VanPeursem, Peter 1868-1962 & Jessie Councilman Family
VANPEURSEM, COUNCILMAN, ROMANS, KARS
Posted By: Wilma J. Vande Berg - volunteer (email)
Date: 5/5/2024 at 06:13:17
VanPeursem, Peter 1868-1962 and Jessie Councilman Family
This story was taken from pages 544-545 of the Maurice Centennial Book (1891-1991). The story was transcribed for this BIOS by Beth De Leeuw of the Greater Sioux County Genealogical Society. Some research notes were added by Wilma J. Vande Berg .
Peter Van Peursem was the son of George and Mientje (Kars) Van Peursem. He was born February 5, 1868, and died November 27, 1962. He married Jessie Councilman. They had three children: Edith, January 3, 1909, (Mrs. Charles Chase); James E., August 17, 1900 – June 10, 1972; and Lois (Mrs. Ed Mieras).
In 1868, in Pella, Iowa, I, Peter Van Peursem was born in a log house with a leaky roof. When it rained, mother had to set pans all over the floor and beds to catch the water. Five years later, I, with my parents moved to Sioux County, Iowa. My father put the horses and all our belongings in a freight car and mother and the children in the caboose of the same car or train, and we landed in LeMars, Iowa. There was no railroad to Alton, Iowa; so father unloaded the car in LeMars, assembled the wagon parts, and put all the furniture in the wagon. We bought a cook stove in LeMars, and put that in the wagon, put the harnesses on the horses and were ready to start for Sioux County. Father and Mother sat on the spring seat in front and we kids, Janet, Jane, Peter, Henry and Will, on top of the furniture with our legs dangling on the side of the load. We moved in an old house 3˝ miles east of where Maurice now is, which Uncle Gerrit De Jong had for us.
The next spring I was five years old and father took me to school. My first school teacher was Dena Pelmulder. She was a nice Christian lady. The school house was on the northeast corner of Conrad De Jong’s farm. It was moved one mile south later.
Prairie fires were bad at that time. One day the teacher got orders that the prairie fire was coming and we should take our books and slates and run to some plowed land and sit there until the fire was over.
We had to walk one and a half miles to school. Had no overshoes and often the snow was deep and would get in our shoes and would melt, and we would sit with wet feet in school all day. You could not buy stockings or mittens at that time, so mother had to knit them for all of us. All the books we had was a reader, spelling, arithmetic, and slate.
Could not go to church or Sunday School for I had only one suit of clothes, and that I used every day. It was a waist with buttons on it to hold up my pants. Father said we should get that boy a new suit of clothes so he can go to Sunday School. That was not an easy thing to do, for you could not buy it ready made. So my parents went to Orange City, to buy the cloth. They also brought home a seamstress, a dressmaker they were called then. She stayed a whole week to fix me up. It was a fine suit, coat, vest and pants, all trimmed with yellow braid. And I was proud. I wore it on Sunday and got ready for the next Sunday but father said no, no, Henry has to wear that suit today. I cried, but it did no good, and so for a whole year I could have it every other Sunday. We went to church in Orange City, with the lumber wagon eight miles. We also used that same wagon, week days for hauling hay and other things. Then we had a hayrack on it. So, Saturday night after dark, father would go out and take that heavy rack off the wagon and put the wagon box on it, and Monday morning take the box off again and put the rack on again.
At that time there was only one church building in Orange City. It was a Unitarian Church. The Reformed used the public school building for their church. Dominie Bolks was the pastor. He had a long white beard and wore a silk stovepipe hat. He served as both pastor and doctor, for there was no doctor in Orange City, at that time. When the roads were bad, father would go to church on horseback and mother would stay home with us kids and would tell us Bible stories. She was a real saint.
One time father promised me a lead pencil with a rubber eraser for my birthday and I was anxiously waiting for that day to come. On that day he went to town on horseback and I looked out all afternoon for him to come back. And when I saw him a quarter of a mile away, I ran to meet him. When I got near him I yelled out, “Did you bring my pencil?” He said yes. I never was so happy in my life.
I worked out a lot for our neighbors and got ten cents a day, and every evening I counted the pennies to see how much money I had.
I was seventeen years of age when I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. It was in the Maurice Church. Dominie Boer was our pastor. I went to the Academy in Orange City, and had planned to study for the ministry, but they put me in a class with all high school graduates, and I came from the fourth grade in a country school, so could not keep up with them, and I quit. Have always been sorry I did. The following year I worked in a hardware store, saved my money.
We had a brass band in Maurice. I played a coronet. I also took music lessons from a young lady that rode through the country on horseback from house to house where she had pupils. The came from near LeMars.
I also went through the grasshopper days, three years in succession. One year they took all our wheat, and we had to eat corn bread instead of wheat bread. Mother would bake a big pan full in the morning and we would fill up on it while it was warm with bacon fat and homemade syrup of which we had plenty. In the evening, what was left over we would break up on our plate and would cover it with fresh milk. It was good, try it. We never felt better.
After I worked in the hardware store, I took a business course in a LeMars College. The following year, I went to a normal school to prepare for teaching. And the following two years I taught school for thirty dollars a month.
In 1897, I married my music teacher, Jessie Councilman. We have lived together sixty years, until the Lord took her home. Till we meet again, never to part. We have three children, a boy and a girl, James and Edith. We also have an adopted little girl, three years old, Lois, now she is a grandmother.
I also took music in LeMars, which has been a big help to me. The following year I had a singing class in Maurice, one in Seney, and one in a school house. Also did a lot of carpenter work, built my own house. Was a grain buyer in one of the elevators, also had a feed store. Run both for eighteen years. I was president of the Maurice school, a twelve grade school. Was Sunday School teacher for twelve years in First Church. Was a charter member of the American Reformed Church, elder in the same church twenty years. My last job was hardware in Maurice, which I had for eighteen years. In 1946, I sold my store, my house and all my property and went to California, and am staying with my daughter Edith and plan to do so till the Lord calls me home. For I have no abiding city here.
P.S. I have omitted a few things. In grasshopper days my parents were very poor, so father contracted to pick some corn for a neighbor. It was cold and snow on the ground and I had no overshoes. Mother put up a lunch for us to eat at noon. At noon Father said we better eat our lunch. The coffee was so cold and the bread was frozen solid. I had good teeth so finally got it down. Also was road supervisor and water boy that is haul water for the threshing machine. Later sold coffee and tea from house to house.
(end of the family story in the Maurice Book. Assumed written by Peter Van Peursem)
RESEARCH Note: From a family report on ancestry.com public member trees submitted by other than this submitter.
Pieter Van Peursem was born 15 Feb 1868 Pella Marion Iowa and died 27 Nov 1962 Orange City IA. He was the son of George E. Van Peursem 1842-1929 and Wilhelmina Meintje Kars 1844-1930. He married Jessie Councilman 17 Jan 1897 at Le Mars IA.
Jessie Belle Councilman was born 25 Sep 1867 Liberty Township, Clinton County IA and died 9 Jun 1958 at Altadena Los Angeles CA. Her marriage record states parents as Eugene Councilman 1843-1914 and Ann Romans 1846-1912. Peter and Jessie had three children.
CHILDREN :
1. James Eugene Van Peursem born 17 Aug 1900 Sherman Twp Sioux county Ia died 10 Jun 1972 Richmond Madison Co. KY. He married Eliza Hughes 1903-1969. He was music director at KY State. Two children. No further information was found.
2. Edith Van Peursem born 2 Jun 1909 Maurice IA died 6 Nov 2001 Medford OR. She married Charles Calvin Chase 1906-1980 Two children Susan Elizabeth Chase 1943-2000 and one other not named.
3. Lois Emma Van Peursem born 28 Nov 1916 Akron IA, died 7 Feb 1996 Carrollton, Denton Texas. She married Edward William Mieras 1914-2008. They had two children.
OBITUARY OF PETER VAN PEURSEM
Peter Van Peursem obit from the Sioux Center News, of December 6, 1962
Funeral services were held at the First Reformed Church at Maurice, IA at 1:30 p.m. Saturday for Peter Van Peursem, 94, pioneer Sioux County resident who died November 27, 1962 at the Orange City hospital following a 5 months illness. The Cooperative Funeral Service of Sioux Center was in charge of arrangements. Burial was in the Maurice cemetery.
Mr. Van Peursem was well-known in the Sioux County area. He operated a hardware store at Maurice for many years, retiring in 1946. Following his retirement he moved to Altadena, CA where he made his home with a daughter, Mrs. Edith Chase. He returned to Orange City a year and a half ago and resided in the Pioneer home. He was born February 15, 1868 at Pella, Ia., Mrs. Van Peursem preceded him in death in June 1958.
Survivors include two daughters, Mrs. Chase (Edith) and Mrs. Lois Mieras, Sioux City, one son James, Richmond, Ky; seven grandchildren, five great-grandchildren; three brothers Martin Van Peursem, Orange City: Rev. John Van Peursem, Zeeland, Mich. and Rev Gerrit Van Peursem, Somerville, N.J.OBITUARY OF JESSIE COUNCILMAN
Source: Sioux County Capital (6-19-1958)
Born: September 25, 1867
Died: June 9, 1958
SERVICES HELD FOR MRS. PETER VAN PEURSEM AT MAURICE
Mrs. Peter Van Peursem, nee Jessie Councilman, 90, died June 9, 1958, at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Charles Chase, at Altadena, California after an illness of one week.
Funeral services were held Saturday, June 14, at the First Reformed Church at Maurice. Burial was made at the Maurice Cemetery.
Mrs. Van Peursem was born at De Witt, Iowa, September 25, 1867. She married Peter Van Peursem January 27, 1897, at Le Mars. They lived at Maurice until 1940 when they moved to Altadena, California, to reside at the home of their daughter, Mrs. Charles Chase.
Survivors include her husband; one son, James, of Richmond, Kentucky; two daughters, Mrs. Charles Chase of Altadena, California and Mrs. Edward Mieras of Sioux City; seven grandchildren; and three great-grandchildren.
Names of members of the family, and of friends and former neighbors who attended the services, are listed in the Maurice News in today’s Capital.
Sioux Biographies maintained by Linda Ziemann.
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