Help with Dutch translation/Transcription of Second River Church Minutes?

Question

Hi, I'm looking for some help translating/ transcripting a page from the Second River Dutch Reformed Church in Bergen, New Jersey. The document was written in 1725 and is quite legible. From my limited knowledge and the help of google translate, I believe it's some sort of charter or financial agreement for starting the Church. The charter/ agreement is 4 pages long but I think with a translation of the first page, I could figure out the next 3 as the writing appears to be quite formulaic. 

The record is found at Ancestry. Here's a link: https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6961/images/43104_182029006040_0928-00126

I could also send a copy of the image if you can't get past the paywall. 

Thank you so much for any help!

Comments

I skimmed it. From what I could recognize, I got the impression that it was definitely about forming a new church, and I thought one passage was saying that a new church was because it the existing church was too far for the people of Second Creek to travel on a regular basis. But I think a lot of it is about matters like their price lists for services like burials.

If you are still willing to fool with Google Translate, you might trying running this through the Afrikaans language translation engine there. Some of our Dutch cousins have found it to be better than the Dutch language engine for translating New Netherland Dutch.

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If you send/post the scan I could try my best.

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Thank you, I'll also try Afrikaans.

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Interesting comment about Afrikaans, Ellen. There was a 'Jersey Dutch' dialect (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jersey_Dutch  and  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3fKgpY46iw). I wonder if this book is an example. Even though Jersey Dutch was the spoken language in many areas, the vast majority of surviving early Dutch writing in those communities was in Reformed Church records.

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Thanks for the translation, Michel. In this case Niew-Urk was Newark, which is now a city in New Jersey, but in 1725 was the township in which Second River was located. Newark was named by English (Puritans) who migrated from Connecticut. In some early writings, they wrote it 'New-Ark'.

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Niew-Urk is fun! Urk in NL is an former island in the former sea, now the IJsselmeer. In 1942 connected to new land (polder). It's living is/was fish, fish, fish. Never read any word on their migrations.

'New-Ark' is more connected to the religion of the emigrants, since it was their faith who motivated them to go to the new land. Ark is more logical than Urk.

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Interesting background. 

I don't think religious faith was a particularly important motive for Dutch people to emigrate to New Netherland. The Huguenots in their midst were pursuing religious freedom and there were others who went to New Netherland in search of religious tolerance, but mostly the Dutch (the males, at least) seem to have come for a job or other economic opportunity,  or maybe  adventure. 

Answer 1

Thanks for e-mailing the scan.

Transcription first part:

Register der Kerkelijke Acten der Gemeente Jusu Christi tot Secund-River

Anno 1725 Den (missing date here)

Zijn door de gemeinte van Secund-River tot Opfienderen van 't bouwen van een nieuwe Kerk verkoosen Gerrit Wouterse, Frans van Dijk, Gideon van Winkel, Johannes Koning, welke persoonen met goedvinding van Kerkenraed en gemeinte dese navolgende Articulen hebben opgerigt en vastgesteld om volgens de zelvige de opbouwinge en verdere regeeringe der Kerke te reguliere welke Articulen aldus luiden.

En: The church community 'Secund-River' has chosen the mentioned people to start a church. They also got permission of the Church council. They will build the church and govern it. This is not so much a building, but the institute/organisation.

V1. ten Eersten. Dat alle de geene die in de jurisdictie van Nieuw-Urk woonen en Opbouwers zijn van de Kerk van Secund-River haer plaetsen sullen hebben voor Man en Vrouw, en dat de selve an haer sal blijven soo lang als sij haer Tractement voor de Praedikant betaelen an die voorseide Kerk, maer bij aldien iemant uijt ons Block, 't voorseide tractement niet betaeld voor de Reekening van ons derde part, soo sal zijn plaets weder vervallen an de voorseijde Kerk.

En Both men and women are welcome and will be offered a place in the Church, as long as they pay the Church.

Praedikant means this is a non Catholic Church. It is interesting to read they mention both men and women, and talking about money in the first chapter makes them Dutch for sure .

Nieuw-Urk is related to Urk. That was an island at that time, currently known for its very strict Christian society, amongst other things.

V2. Ten Tweeden.

En: continues about the seats, what happens if people die. For translating the rest: the f type of letter is a long s. ae is not used in current Dutch, search with a instead.

Gideon is your ancestor?

Comments

Thank you so much for the translation and also the tips! Gideon is not my direct ancestor but he is the brother of my ancestor Johannis who moved to the Second River Church around the same time as Gideon. Gideon and Johannis both appear many times in the minutes section of the church records between 1725 and 1747. I think they both held leadership roles. It's interesting because they both seem to disappear from records between their marriages in Bergen and the establishment of the Second River Church where their youngest children are baptized.

Here are the wikitree IDs for both brothers: Van_Winkle-439 and Van_Winkel-8. 

Thanks again!

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Top Michel!