BIO Part III - Sjoerd Aukes Sipma

This Part III of the Biography of Sjoerd Auke Sipma supercedes Parts I and II, see the BIOS page at www.iagenweb.org/sioux

The Parts I, II, and III, were taken from many sources and written up as given by the source, therefore there is duplication of material. This BIOS Part III is respectfully submitted by Wilma J. Vande Berg of the Greater Sioux County Genealogical Society.

Sjoerd Aukes Sipma 1812-1896 wrote several informational letters from Pella to his home town in the Netherlands describing what life was like in the United States . This part of his BIOS deals with his Netherlands genealogical roots and historical information found on line done by others, as described.

Greetings from America - Chapter 7

Contributed by Kor Postma of the Netherlands (Some minor changes in this text were made by Wilma J. Vande Berg and are in parenthesis initialed by submitter.)

This is the seventh of twelve articles about the early immigrants to Pella that Kor Postma contributed and Thys de Jong has now translated for us.
The Family of Sjoerd Aukes Sipma (submitter has found some errors with this family history.)

Besides the already named emigrants from Dantumadeel there were also some emigrants from Oostdongeradeel and Westdongeradeel aboard the Pieter Floris. They were Sjoerd Aukes Sipma and his wife Jantje Sjoukjes de Vries, Gerrit Gerbens van der Weit and his wife Wypkje Jacobs Kuipers and Abraham Paulus Buwalda and his spouse Aaltje Jans Havenga. The van der Weits traveled with 4 children and the Buwalda family with 5. In the 7th and 8th articles we will look at them and their connection with the Roorda family from Dantumadeel. We begin with the best known of the three, namely Sjoerd Aukes Sipma.

Sjoerd Aukes Sipma was born on August 17, 1812 at Bornwird in the municipality of Westdongeradeel. He was a son of Auke Sipkes Sipma and Yttje Ritskes Reitsma, his occupation was farmhand and market gardener. On March 1847 he married in Westdongeradeel with Jantje Sjoukjes de Vries. She was born on June 6, 1819 at Engwierum in the municipality of Oostdongeradeel a daughter of Sjoukje Ruurds de Vries. The birth record of Jantje reads: Jantje, daughter of Sjoukje Ruurds de Vries, labourer, "having been born out of wedlock." Shortly after their wedding they left on April 3, 1847 to go to America in search of a better life. After a successful ocean voyage they arrived in Baltimore on June 11, 1847 and on August 31, 1847 in Pella.

On September 23, 1848 their first child was born and named Yttje (later Edith). In 1850 a son was born and named Auke, and a second son was born on January 1, 1852 who received the name Jan (later John). Again the family was blessed with the birth of a 3rd son who was named Sipke; where and when he was born is not known. The other 3 children were born in Pella. The family descended into mourning when 2 year old Auke suddenly died in 1852. A few years later Sjoerd's wife, Jantje died, which was a great loss to him. She died before October 13, 1857 for on that date Sjoerd was remarried, this time to Boukje Boonstra.

Boukje (or Baukje later known as Bertha) Boonstra was the widow of Tjeerd Tjeerds Bruinja (Bruinia). She was a daughter of Tjeerd Dirks Boonstra and Geeltje Hoekes de Haan and was born on June 7, 1830 in Bergum (she was also a niece of Wopke Hoekes de Haan who appears in an earlier article). On May 10, 1850 in Tietjerksteradeel she had married Tjeerd Tjeerds Bruinja (or Bruinia wjvb), son of Tjeerd Pieters Bruinja and Trijntje Sijbes Kuipers. Tjeerd Tjeerds was born on June 28, 1824 at Eestrum, Tietjerksteradeel. From Boukje's first marriage 3 children were born: Geeltje, Tjeerd and Trijntje Bruinja were their names. (wjvb- The first two children are not mentioned so may have died only Trijntje was noted.)

Tjeerd and Boukje arrived on June 11, 1855 in New York from Rotterdam. The ship they crossed the ocean on was named the Tarvlinta. In Pella a daughter was born Carrie (Trijntje) on September 6, 1856. wjvb- She was a step daughter of Sjoerd) Tjeerd Tjeerds Bruinja died before October 13, 1857.

From her 2nd marriage with Sjoerd Aukes Sipma 7 more children were born: Auke (Oscar) on October 8, 1858; Geertje (Kate) on May 19, 1862; Hiltje (Lillie) on November 28, 1864; Sipke on February 1867; Richard on October 17; 1869; Annie on July 29, 1872 and John, whose birth date is unknown. All 7 Children were born in Pella. (wjvb- The second John is not confirmed.)

Boukje Boonstra (Bruinja) Sipma died on July 12 or 16, 1884 in Orange City, Sioux Co, Iowa. She was buried in West Lawn Cemetery.

It seems Sjoerd Aukes Sipma could not do without a wife because he married for the 3rd time on June 7, 1893 in Orange City, Sioux Co, Iowa, Kaatje de Boer. Kaatje was born in Zwartsluis (Overijssel) on April 25, 1835, a daughter of Peter de Boer and Hendrika Derks Toetert. She was also a widow having been married with Berend Hendrik Isaac Mulder from which marriage she had 3 children. Kaatje probably arrived in America in December 1881. Sjoerd's 3rd marriage did not last long, for he died on January 16, 1896 in Orange City and was buried in West Lawn Cemetery.

After Sjoerd died Kaatje de Boer married for the 3rd time Wobbe Siebes Steensma. Wobbe was born on September 21, 1820 at Hallum, Ferwerderadeel and was the son of Siebe Klazes Steensma and Antje Wobbes Boonstra. He was the widower of Antje Tjeerds de Boer, daughter of Tjeerd Pieters de Boer and Antje Rinderts Lelia, and already had 5 children from that marriage. Wobbe Siebes Steensma died on July 11, 1911 in Orange City; Kaatje de Boer died on April 4, 1914 in Bon Homme County, South Dakota.
What happened to the children of Sjoerd Aukes Sipma? (according to Kor Postma’s report)

Yttje (Edith) married Peter Hein de Jong on October, 24, 1871 in Orange City. Yttje (Edith) died on December 20, 1920, also in Orange City. Peter Hein de Jong was born on April 9, 1847 and died on December 14, 1922. The de Jong couple had 7 children:
Jan (John) married Arendina (Dina) Harmson or Harmsen on February 9, 1875 in Pella. Jan (John) died on July 26, 1931 (wjvb- 1934 in Crawford CO.) in Sioux County, Iowa. Arendina Harmson was born around 1857 and died after May 10, 1891; the exact date is unknown, but May 10, 1891 is the date her youngest son Edward Sipma was born. Jan and Arendina had 6 children.
Auke (Oscar) Sipma married Bertha de Vries on March 26, 1888 in Boyden, Sioux County, Iowa. Auke (Oscar) died on October, 15, 1943 in Boyden. Bertha was born on August 8, 1870 in the Netherlands and died on February 20, 1956 probably in Boyden. The couple had 7 children.

Geertje (Kate) Sipma married Charles Nathaniel Sawyer on March 24, 1880 in Orange City. Geertje (Kate) died on July 21, 1913 in Hull, Sioux County, Iowa. Charles Nathaniel Sawyer was born on March 1 in Buffalo, NY and died on October 10, 1926 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Kate and Charles had 7 children.

Hiltje (Lillie) Sipma married on March 16, 1885 in Orange City John Boterman. Hiltje (Lillie) died on December 18, 1940 in Hull, Sioux County, Iowa. John Boterman was born on March 28, 1859/1861 in Pella and died on June 6, 1926 in Excelsior Springs, Missouri. They had 6 children.

Sipke Sipma married on January 22, 1891 (or possibly July 22, 1890) in Sioux City with Anna Jansma. The couple divorced in 1923. Sipke died on December 18, 1933, also in Sioux City, Woodbury Co, Iowa. Anna Jansma was born in 1873 and died in 1926. Further data about her is unknown. The couple had 4 children.

Richard Sipma married Anna Baas on August 25, 1892 in Orange City. He died in September 1934. Anna Baas was born on March 27, 1874 and died on May 7, 1953. The couple left 9 children of which the youngest, Clarence Ray, was born on November 13, 1913 in Gascoyne, North Dakota; hence it's likely that Richard and Anna died there.

Annie Sipma married on August 17, 1892 Wiebe Lieuwes van der Schaaf. Annie died on March 6, 1918 in Newkirk, Sioux Co, Iowa (1938 is also mentioned as the year she died). Wiebe Lieuwes van der Schaaf was born on 23 November 1866 in the municipality of Kollumerland; he was the son of Lieuwe Wiebes van der Schaaf and Grietje Joukes van der Stee(g). He died at Newkirk on January 11, 1936. The couple had 7 children and are buried in the Newkirk Cemetery.

About the child John Sipma from this marriage nothing further is known (? wjvb comment don’t think there was a John of the second marriage)
Trijntje, daughter from the first marriage of Boukje Boonstra and Tjeerd Bruinja, later used the surname Sipma. This Trijntje, later called Carrie, married on December 10, 1875 in Pella (wjvb Sioux county) with Andrew van der (de ) Berg. Carrie (Trijntje) Bruinja died in 1931. Andrew van den Berg was born in February 1850 in the Netherlands and died on September 10, 1927. No further data about him is known. The couple had 10 children. (wjvb – Andrew is great uncle to my husband so submitter has data on him)
With this the number of named grandchildren of Sjoerd Aukes Sipma comes to 63.

Sjoerd Aukes Sipma became a leading citizen in Pella and was a co-founder of the second colony Nieuw-Holland [New Holland] later named Orange City. This place grew in a short time to around 1500 inhabitants and became as prosperous as Pella.

The first church built there was the "Gereformeerde Gemeente" [Reformed congregation?], in which Sipma served as elder. Sjoerd did fairly well in business. Besides his own farm he was involved in the buying and selling of farmland because he saw that its value rose rapidly. He never regretted his decision to leave Friesland as is witnessed in his many letters to the country of his birth. But leaving had been difficult for him.

A short fragment from one of his letters:
‘Now a few words for you, my elderly father, if you are still alive. For you to come here would probably not be good, you would likely not complete the voyage. Parting from you was difficult for me, much more difficult than I let on at the time. I would wish to be with you, Father, and with my brothers and sisters, but I would not wish to return to Friesland. O Father, should our names be written in the Book of Life, about which from this side of the grave we know but little, then we will see each other again in the heavenly Jerusalem where there is no mourning or tears; then all our tears will have been wiped away.
A number of these letters have been saved and those who remained in Friesland have published them in an historically worthwhile booklet. Sipma can rightfully be named as one of the most important pioneers that came from Friesland and worked so hard to build the American midwest.’
Sjoerd Aukes Sipma was a full brother of Hiltje Aukes Sipma whom we met in the 3rd article and was married to Heerke Ypes Viersen.
This article came about through the cooperation of Wilma Vande Berg (USA); Marvin Knock (USA); Hans van der Woude (the Netherlands), Albert Geurink (the Netherlands) and Linda Ziemann (USA)
If you have additions or corrections I would like to hear them.
Kor Postma
van Aernsmastraat 14
9104 HG Damwoude
(Above was respectfully copied from Kor Postma’s work)

Sjoerd Aukes Sipma (picture from the Illustrated Historical Atlas of Sioux County Iowa 1908 Part III Section 2 page 2)

There seems to be no picture of the family readily available to post .

S. A. SIPMA, Deceased.
Born in Netherlands, 1813.
Settled in Sioux County, 1869
Died January 13, 1895

There are two letters posted on line. Here are the sites to read those letters. Since the submitter is not sure of copyrights posed for the letters they are not printed out in full in this narrative. But it can be assumed that if you are using the information for your own personal use it is alright to copy from them.

FIRST LETTER

Sipma1.pdf
This letter written by Sjoerd Sipman is 13 pages in length. It is very interesting reading about how things were at that time 1847- 1848 in Marion County, Iowa.
Letter of Sjoerd Aukes Sipma to the Citizens of Bornwerd in Westdongeradeel. Dockum, Wed. B. Schaafsma 1848; Translator: Rev. C. Greenfield.

SECOND LETTER - Sjoerd received so much publicity in the Netherlands from the first letter, he sat down and penned a second long letter regarding the conditions in America.

Noteworthy News from PELLA the United States of North America. The second letter from Sjoerd Aukes Sipma. From there to the residents of Bornwerd. Wherin many particular incidences took place about the Holland settlers in Iowa, the life style and habits of the Americans, in addition many useful hints for those who anticipate to emigrate to the US. Printed by Mevr. B. Schaafsma in Dockum 1849 and Translated by John J. Dahm Sr. Grand Rapids MI 1979.

Sipma2.pdf
The Preface to the second long letter reads as such:
“We have made a few changes in this second letter from Sjoerd Aukes Sipma in which was found much more noteworthy material to publish than we found in the first letter. And also we have made very few changes in the style of the writer, that is in his choice of words so that in the first place the peculiarity of the writer might not be lost and secondly that no one might accuse us of breaking faith with him. That we in this have faithfully fulfilled our task, we can testify to those who have read the original hand written letter which has been in the hands of many different persons. On does not object then then here and there a wrong expression is used or a word is found in the wrong place. The writer is not an educated man- he himself admits this - but only a day laborer.
Our purpose of publishing this letter is for the use of those who anticipate moving to the United States and possibly providing an hour of pleasant reading. The second letter was also the wish of most Bornwerders and of the relatives of the writer that even as the first one that it be printed. “
The letter was 30 pages long….

The submitter has since checked the contents of the Sipma File in the Genealogy Department at the Sioux Center Library, there are copies of the letters written to the Netherlands by Sjoerd A. Sipma.

Some of the contents of those letters may be posted in another segment on this page:
Sjoerd Aukes Sipma - Letters written back to Holland in 1848. Those letters described the conditions in the new settlement in and around Pella Iowa. Much was elaborated upon about the price of land and how it was distributed, buildings, crops, livestock and the vitals of life. This was all of particular interest to the people back home in the Netherlands because they were experiencing particularly hard times then. It does make very interesting reading see the two web sites listed above for the complete contents of the letters.

ANOTHER SJOERD A. SIPMA HISTORY ACCOUNT, by Henry and Thessa Sawyer
Sipma History - Why immigrate?
“The Hungry Forties” is the name dutch historians have given to the decade beginning in 1840. The industrialized southern provinces of the Netherlands had successfully rebelled against William II, and together with other Flemish Catholic areas to their south, had formed the country of Belguim. This left the agricultural northern provinces dependent on the produce for the land, plus a small but growing maritime industry. The potato crop, which was the main source of livelihood, had been in short supply for several years due to a blight. It was a difficult period, and it was estimated that over one-third of the population was receiving outside aid.

Many hundreds of dutch families were leaving the Homeland to form colonies elsewhere – in South Africa, the East Indies Islands, northern south America, and the United states and other areas. The Sipma family headed by Aukes Sipma (father of Sjoerd) and his wife, had a rough time along with the others. There was religious intolerance and persecution of the Reformed Church by the “National Church” and the government of the Netherlands. This added to the emigration of Dutchmen to other lands.

Aukes Sipkes father of Sjoerd A.) was born about 1765. He and his wife lived in Bornwert, Friesland, and had a fmily of four daughters and three sons. A contemporary in Friesland wrote, in 1849, of Aukes Sipma: “ ….a respected old gentleman of 84 years… raised seven children without ever gtting financial aid from anyone… earning a living for his family with his own hands...they gave their children exellent training and earned the respect of all the citizens of their village.

Two of the Sipma children. Heiltje Sipma Vierson and Sjoerd Aukes Sipma, and their families joined an “Association” leaving Amsterdam for the United States in 1847. another son, Ritske Sipma, and his family joined them in Marion County, Iowa in 1853. In copies of old letters were found one other daughter, Ytje (ietje) Sipma, mentioned by name. There was also mention of “Other sisters and brother there. Indicating the some were still living in the Netherlands in 1848.

(Next paragraph was dedicated to the family of sister Heiltje Sipma and Hierke Ypes Vierson. He had loaned Sjoerd Sipma the money 202 guilders about 81 dollars for the trip to America, and the two families traveled together from Amsterdam to Pella, Iowa.)

(Next paragraph was on the family of Ritske Sipma born 1808. In the 1856 census this family was living next to Sjoerd A. Sipma and it was noted that Sjoerd was a widowed)

(Next three paragraphs relate the family’s birth, marriage, census records with reference to the estimated time of Jantje’s death at Pella all information already noted before)

Translation of two letters by Sjoerd Aukes Sipma to the “Instructor of Youth” in Bornwerd, Friesland are in the possession of many of the Sipma Descendants. The first was written during the winter of 1847-1848 and tells of the trip from Friesland to Pella, Iowa, and the experiences the first few months in the new land. The second was dated September 26, 1848 in answer to request for further information for those who were considering following the first group of colonists to Iowa. For the benefit of those who have not read these letters we copies some excerpts.

In the first letter he writes: “ ….on Easter Monday, the 3rd of April, 1847, we pulled out. On the 7th …..we arrived at Amsterdam.” (via Wadden Zee and Zuider Zee, then back to Den Helder on the North Sea)”…. And to the large ship ‘Pieter Flores’….laid still for eight days… the 19th we put out…. with a total of 311 souls….we laid fourteen days in the English Channel. We bobbed up and down week in and wee out on the great Atlantic Ocean until Jun 11th we came close to the city of Baltimore. … on the 17th we left”. (via trains and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal through the Blue Ridge Mountains . Etc. to Pittsburgh, then by steamship down the Ohio River into the Mississippi River.) “….On July 6th to St. Louis”. (From Baltimore to St. Louis he estimated the distance as 600 hours – an hour in Holland being about three miles.)

After some delay at St. Louis the leaders of the “Association” decided on Marion County, Iowa as their destination. They rejected Missouri because of slavery there, and Texas because the climate was too hot. They traveled by boat to Keokuk, and overland “…. fourteen hours into a land west of the Mississippi ….and arrived in Marion County the 31st of August”. (The trip took 150 days)

“Now I shall tell you of some of the noteworthy sights that we have seen on this trip. …. the American ingenuity is great, the canals run everywhere along the rivers…. They get their water for the rivers that are always flowing. Sometime the rivers flow under the canals. We also traveled with the canal boats under great mountains that were entirely of stone, so that one could say it to be impossible to be made by man’s work. At Columbia to Hollidaysburg there are 130 locks in the canal, each spilling (raising) 7 or 8 feet ...from Johnson to Pittsburg we again had a good 100 locks that also spilled the same amount of water, but this time always downward.”

He continues: “This winter our house burned down, but we saved part of our furniture, and we did not have to eat any less bread as I earned good money. First, I worked for Scholte for 25 cents a day till winter set in. When our house burned there was an American who had built a new house, whom I happened to meet by accident, who said I should take his oxen and wagon and move my belongings into his vacated house, which I also did. Now I work for him this winter for $8.00 a month besides free rent and fuel., so that I have more than a living this winter….. I am so glad I am in America.”

His second letter to Bornwerd, Friesland gives a remarkable story of early Marion County, Iowa history and the early life of the colonists there. It also tells prospective emigrants of the requirements for the trip and what is needed to start farming. It gives prices of land, livestock, grains and foodstuffs, and various other information which they had apparently requested. It is twenty type written pages long. Within two years of his arrival, Sjoerd Sipma had bought 25 acres of land, and had repaid the 202 guilders he had borrowed from his brother- in -law for the trip. The following excerpt from page 601 of the 1850 Census agricultural record gives us an insight into some conditions of pioneer living. It is dated August 19th of that year and lists Sjoerd A. Sipma as the owner of 40 acres of improved and 129 acres of unimproved land in Lake Prairie Township of Marion county, Iowa, with a total valur of $600.00. Other information: implements and machinery, $39.00; 2 horses, 1 mule, 6 cattle, 12 swine and 4 sheep, total value $112.00; produced on land: 60 bushels of wheat, 500 bu. Indian corn, 40 bu. Oats, 200 bu. Potatoes, 2 ton hay and 50 pounds butter; Value of animals slaughtered, $6.00.

Marion County records list Sjoerd Aukes Sipma no less than forty times as buyer or seller of land, before they left for Sioux County in 1870. He was one of four men chosen to make the tirst trip overland to Northwest Iowa in 1869 to inspect lands available for homesteading, with the idea of forming a large colony of Hollanders there. They equipped a canvas-covered wagon with supplies for the four week trip. The other members were Hendrik Jan Vander Waa, who furnished the twam of mules and was the driver; Huibertus Muilenburg; and Jelle Pelmulder, who had been the ‘Instructor of Youth’ at Bornwerd, Friesland, and to whom the Sipma Letters of 1847 and 1848 had been written.

There was much excitement in Pella over the report they brought back. Eighty-two persons enrolled in the new project and subscribed for 17,920 acres of land. This large group, including the Sipma family, moved to Sioux county, Iowa in the spring of 1870. They chose an excellent site on which to build a town, which they names New Holland. The name was later changed to Orange City.

Sioux County remained the Sipma family home, the children grew to maturity, married and raised families. Boukje (Bertha) Boonstra Sipma died July 12, 1884 and Sjoerd Aukes Sipma died January 16, 1896. Both are buried in the Orange City Cemetery.

BIOS Part III is respectfully submitted by Wilma J. Vande Berg of the Greater Sioux County Genealogical Society - May 2022

HOME