During the 4th quarter of last year (2020) I had several new genealogical discoveries for the van Raaphorst and Metsch families. These resulted in updates to my Family Tree Maker and Ancestry trees, as well as changes to the van Raaphorst and Metsch family pages on this site.
Following is a summary.
van Raaphorst family updates
Great uncle’s death confirmed: Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia) during Colonial Wars, 1878
I recently found records confirming that my grandfather’s younger brother, Antonius Theodorus van Raaphorst (b. 1855), died 27 Jun 1878, in Bukit Lawang, North Sumatra, Indonesia.
Antonius served in the army from 1871 until he was sent to what was then called the Dutch East Indies to fight in the Aceh War (1873-1904). For at least part of his time in the army he was a drummer.
Antonius’s place of death, Bukit Lawang, is now a small tourist village on the bank of the Bahorok River in the North Sumatra province of Indonesia. The village is known for its Sumatran orangutan sanctuary, and because it is a main access point for the Gunung Leuser National Park. On November 2, 2003, a flash flood nearly destroyed Bukit Lawang and killed over 200 people.
Recently discovered 4th cousins
Over the past several months I have discovered three distant van Raaphorst cousins (all 4th cousins, 1x removed), two living in the Netherlands and one in Australia. I’m glad to be in touch with them!
Our nearest common ancestor is Leendert van Raaphorst (1756-1819). He was born in Lisse and died in Haarlem.
Metsch family update
Discovery of 6th cousins!
During the past several months I’ve been working with Metsch family members to compare family trees and determine if we are related. Using only a paper trail (and not relying on DNA evidence), we have discovered that we are 6th cousins, 1x removed! They are the most distant cousins that I’m aware of, and I’m proud of our collective genealogical sleuthing!
Our common ancestor is Daniel Metsch (1672-1741), who was born and died in Hessigheim, Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
