Longevity ~ Gerrit Jilisse Vervoorn (96)

Gerrit Vervoorn was born on 20 April 1770, and baptised in Brakel, Gelderland, The Netherlands, on the 22th with witness Jenneke Vervoorn, the baby's aunt. Gerrit was the 11th child of Adriaantje van Tongerlo and 46-year-old Jillis Vervoorn. Jillis is a grandson of my ancestor Gillis Geraerts Grandia.
At the time of Gerrit's birth, his eldest sister Maaike Vervoorn (1748-1827) was aged 21. Siblings closer in age to Gerrit were Cornelis, born on 10 October 1762, Antonia, baptised on 6 January 1765 in Brakel, and their youngest sister Huijbertje, born on 9 August 1773. They all married in the period 1786-1799. Cornelis Jillisse Vervoorn married Geertruij van Willigen (1762-1835) on 11 June 1786 in Brakel, and they had 10 children, including a son Ruth.

Gerrit Vervoorn and Helena van Wijk were married on 16 October 1794 in Zuilichem

At the age of 24, Gerrit Vervoorn married Helena van Wijk on 6 October 1794 in Zuilichem. 

There is some confusion about the parents and date of birth of Gerrit’s wife:

• Helena’s death record mentions Helena’s age as 56, and her parents as Hendrik van Wijk and Elisabeth Blanken. That couple had a daughter Helena baptised in Brakel on 18 February 1770 with witness Maaike Blanken. When Helena’s eldest daughter Elisabeth was baptised in Brakel on 17 July 1796, the witness was Antonia Blanken.
• The date of birth of Helena van Wijk on family cards - with her husband Gerrit Vervoorn - is 25 July 1771 in Brakel. On 28 July 1771 in Brakel Hendrik van Wijk and Elisabeth van Dalen had a daughter Helena baptised with witness Jasperijntje Versteeg. 

So, either the family cards are wrong, or Elisabeth van Dalen and Elisabeth Blanken are two names for one and the same person, and she had two daughters named Helena. Elisabeth Blanken and Hendrik van Wijk were married in Brakel on 27 December 1769. They had a son Hendrik baptised there on 13 February 1774 with witness Maaike Blanken. 

Jenneke Blanken was a witness in Brakel on 11 December 1757, when Jasperijntje Versteeg and her husband had a son baptised, so there seems to be a relation between Jasperijntje and the Blanken family. 

Since I couldn't find any wedding registration for an Elisabeth van Dalen, I assume she is the same person as Elisabeth Blanken, so Gerrit's wife Helena was likely born on 25 July 1771.  

Gerrit and Helena had the following children:

1. Elisabeth Vervoorn was born on 12-7-1796, and baptised on the 17th in Brakel with witness Antonia Blanken. There she married on 8-1-1815 Arie van Dalen, son of Christiaan van Dalen and Jenneke van den Broek. Elisabeth died on 15-7-1831 in Brakel, aged 35. Elisabeth had children.
2. Adriaantje Gerrits Vervoorn was born on 3-10-1802, and baptised on the 10th in Brakel with witness Huibertje Vervoorn. She died before she reached the age of 10.
3. Hendrik Gerrits Vervoorn was born on 9-4-1806, and baptised on the 13th in Brakel with witness Geertruij van Willigen (1762-1835). Hendrik died there on 27-7-1826 around 11:00, at the age of just 20. Just six days earlier, on 21-7-1826 in Brakel, Hendrik had married 23-year-old Adriaantje Grandia. She was born 10-3-1803, and baptised on the 13th in Brakel. Her parents are Jan Jilisse Grandia and Antonia Jilisse Vervoorn. Four months after her wedding day Adriaantje gave birth to a son Hendrik (1826-1833). After nearly 20 years of widowhood, Ariaantje married her first husband's cousin Ruth Cornelisse Vervoorn (1796-1875), son of Gerrit's brother Cornelis Jillisse Vervoorn (1762-1852) and Geertruij van Willigen. Adriaantje died, aged 49, at 2-12-1852 in Brakel.
4. Jielis Gerrits Vervoorn was born on 27-6-1809, and baptised on 9 July in Brakel with witness Hendrika Vervoorn (1754-1828). Jielis was married, aged 19, on 27-3-1829 in Brakel to 21-year-old Neeltje Vervoorn. Neeltje was born on 21-7-1807, and baptised on the 26th in Brakel. Her parents are Matthijs Vervoorn (1774-1854) en Cornelia van Dalen (1783-1857). Jielis and Neeltje had 6 children, but just 3 of them reached adulthood. Jielis died, aged 35, on 30-4-1845 around 22:00 in Brakel. He was buried there on 6 May. His widow Neeltje died on 14-7-1879 in Brakel, aged 71.
5. Adriaantje Gerrits Vervoorn was born on 31-8-1812 in Brakel, and died there on 9-5-1813.

Two of Gerrit's daughters died young. His son Hendrik died at the age of just 20. Gerrit's two remaining children, Elisabeth and Jielis, both died at the age of 35. By the end of 1845, Gerrit had survived all his children, and his wife, too. Helena van Wijk died in Brakel on 4 April 1826 at the age of 55. Gerrit's elder siblings had died, too, except for Cornelis, Antonia and Huijbertje. Cornelis Vervoorn was a widower, too, when he died in Brakel on 31 May 1852 at the age of 89. Antonia Vervoorn had married Jan Jillise Grandia (1767-1848), and gave birth to 7 children. She died, aged 95, on 30 March 1860 in Brakel. The youngest of these siblings, Huijbertje Vervoorn, had married Antonius Vervoorn (1769-1836). She gave birth to 6 children, but only 4 of them lived to adulthood. Huijbertje died in Brakel on 10 January 1864, aged 90.
Gerrit Vervoorn survived all his children and siblings. He died in Brakel on 16 July 1866 at the age of 96 years, 2 months, and 26 days.

Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant, 23-7-1866

On 6 September 1866 Gerrit's furniture and agricultural tools were sold. On the 7th various horses and cattle, 3 pigs, and some hay and firewood were sold, additionally.

Opregte Haarlemsche Courant, 3-9-1866

Sources: RegionaalArchiefRivierenland.nl, Delpher.nl, WieWasWie.nl.