Maria Jane (Schoonmaker) DeFriest (1832 - 1903)

Born 2 Feb 1832 in , , New York

Ancestors

Wife of John H. DeFriest — married about 1852 in , Yates, NY

Descendants

Died 15 Oct 1903 at age 71 in Pine Grove, Van Buren, MI

Biography

Maria Jannetje Mary Jane Schoonmaker, daughter of Johannes John Schumacker (also: Schoonmaker, Schuhmacher, Shoemaker) and Jane Cole / Cool, was born on 2 February 1832 in New York and baptised there in the Dutch Reformed Church.

She was wed to Johannes John de Friest about 1852 in Yates county, New York. John and Mary had two daughters:

1. Ella J. De Friest;
2. Emma B. De Friest.

Mary's sister Sarah Schoonmaker was married to John De Friest's brother Edward De Friest.

In 1850 Mary is recorded as living in Potter, Yates county, New York. ^[1] In 1860 Mary is recorded as living in Alamo, Kalamazoo county, Michigan. ^[2] In 1870, ^[3] 1880, ^[4] and 1900 ^[5] Mary is recorded living in Pine Grove, Van Buren county, Michigan.

Mary Schoonmaker DeFriest died of a fall and old age on 15 October 1903 at Pine Grove, Van Buren, Michigan and lies buried at Earl Cemetery in Kendall, Pine Grove township. ^{[6] [7]}

Note on her Name

Mary's maiden surname is written in various ways in the documentation. Mary De Friest's death record states that her maiden name was SCHOONMAKER, that her father's name was John Schoonmaker. In the 1850 Census of Potter, Yates, NY Mary is listed as Mary Shoemaker, daughter of John Shoemaker. On the death certificate of her sister Sarah's son Melzer V. DeFriest [sic!], Mother's Name is Sarah Shumacher. Mary's father was baptised under the name Johannes Schumacker on 7 May 1797 at the Reformed Dutch Church of West Copake, Columbia, NY. His father's name was also JOHANNES SCHUMACKER. This famiy's surname was originally either the Dutch Schoenmaker (written Schoonmaker in New York), or the German Schuhmacher, also misspelt as Shumacher, Schumacker in New York. Schumacker might in fact be an authentic dialectal rendition of the official Dutch or German surname, whereas later Shoemaker is merely the English translation of the original surname. In New York, many Dutch and German families intermarried, and even frequented the same churches often called High and Low Dutch Church (High Dutch meaning German, Low Dutch meaning From Holland / Netherlands), so that it is now hard, without further genealogical research, to tell, whether our Schoenmaker [Schoonmaker] or Schuhmacher [Schumacher, Schumacker] family originally came from the Netherlands or from Germany. Mary's and Sarah's paternal grandmother Elizabeth (Dietz/Diets/Teats) Schoemaker was in fact German, and of the Lutheran religion. - Albertus (BdFM)

Sources

1. ↑ 1850 Federal Census of Potter, Yates, New York
2. ↑ 1860 Federal Census of Alamo, Kalamazoo, Michigan
3. ↑ 1870 Federal Census of Pine Grove Township, Van Buren County, Michigan
4. ↑ 1880 Federal Census of Pine Grove Township, Van Buren County, Michigan
5. ↑ 1900 Federal Census of Pine Grove Township, Van Buren County, Michigan
6. ↑ Death Certificate issued by Van Buren county, Michigan. Text: "Mary Jane De Friest - maiden name: SCHOONMAKER; her parents names: John Schoonmaker and Jane Cole; date of death: 15 October 1903; cause of death: fall and old age."
7. ↑ Photograph of Gravestone. Note: her gravestone reads Mary J. DeFriest, Feb. 2, 1932 - Oct. 14, 1903.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Albertus (BdFM) for creating WikiTree profile Mary Schoonmaker on 28 Jan 2015. Click to the [Changes page] for the details of edidts by Albertus and others.