After his return from his VOC adventures, Bruno Zee married Anna Margaretha Meyers in Bremen in 1725. There, they had four children, before moving to Medemblik, Holland, where another five were born.
Born in Bremen
Hendrik Bruynzoon Zeekamp Hinrich was their first born, baptised in the St. Petri Dom in Bremen on 23rd Oct, 1726, and moved with his parents to Medemblik around 1733, when he was 7 years old. He kept the name ‘Zeekamp’, unlike his younger brother Bruijn Bruynzoon Zee. Hendrik married Engeltje Kist in Medemblik at the age of 27, and the couple had 9 children there.
Margreta (Grietje) Zee Bruno’s first-born daughter, Margreta, or Grietje in Dutch, was born in 1728 in Bremen (baptised as Margreta Seekamp), grew up in Medemblik, and was married in Amsterdam in March 1752 to Fredrik Radius at the age of 23. Read the full page on Grietje Zee.
Lüder Zeekamp Bruno and Anna’s third child was a son named Lüder – baptised in Bremen on Dec 3rd, 1730. Nothing further has been found, so far, about Lüder. He may have died in Bremen at a young age, or moved to Medemblik with his parents.
Johann Zeekamp Born in 1732, moved to Medemblik with his parents the following year, and died at the age of 3 on Jun 25, 1736.
The first Zee’s born in Holland
Bruyn Bruynzoon Zee was born in Medemblik in 1735. He was the first Zee to be born in Holland, and is the forefather to which all living Zee’s in 2021 can trace their ancestry back to.
Following Bruyn, three girls were born: Trijntje, Anna, and Mietje.
Three Dutch sisters to the orphanage
Amongst a small crowd, the pastor, Jan Broens, said a few quiet words as the body was slowly into the ground. A small gathering, nothing ornate, nothing grandiose. The conditions cooperated with the occasion – an overcast, chilly, rainy April with a piercing northwest wind – spring was coming, but not yet.
Watching their father being buried that Friday were his three precious daughters: the oldest, fifteen, the youngest, ten. Two years earlier, they had confronted the same sadness: their mother Anna’s funeral, shortly before Christmas. But that time, this same father had been there to comfort them, to dry eyes and provide comforting hugs. In him they had sought their solace.
Now, he too was gone. If one could have been afforded, the tombstone would have read, “BRUNO ZEE, 1697-1753”. But there was not even enough money to pay the customary taxes on death, much less leave any inheritance. For these three girls, an already difficult life was about to become even more so. They were now orphans.
Returning to the home they would no longer be able to live in, they had a few days to mourn, and to pack. But only a few days. The following Thursday, they made their way to the Medemblik Orphanage. The registrant made a note of their names as they were checked in. Trijntje was first, as the eldest. Next, Anna, aged 12. Finally, Mietje – aged 10.
This was April 12th, 1753 – and there would be no further notes in this book on the Zee sisters for a full seven years. In 1760, a single remark was placed beside Anna’s name: died in this house. The register survives today in the Westfries Archief:
When Bruno Zee died in 1753 in Medemblik, his three young daughters became orphans; their mother and his wife Anna had already passed away in 1750. His two sons, Bruin and Hendrik were now adults (aged 18 and 26), as was daughter Grietje, 23, who had just married and had her first child in Amsterdam – but Trijntje (15), Anna (12), and Mietje (10), being underage, were sent to the Orphanage (Het Gereformeerd Weeshuis).
Trijntje Zee spent 11 years there, leaving in 1764 at the age of 26 and marrying Evert van der Hulst a year later in the Heerhugowaard – the couple settled there, the same village as her older brother Bruin, and had three children: Klaasje, Jacobus, and Bruijn.
Anna Zee did not survive the orphanage. We don’t know what happened, and have to assume she became ill, but she died in April 1760 shortly before her 20th birthday.
Mietje Zee spent almost 10 years in the orphanage, leaving in 1763 aged 19. Five years later she moved to Noordscharwoude, where her brother Bruin was busy building boats. She married Jacob Oudt in 1769.
At the entrance to the Orphanage today is this facade – put there in 1785 to depict the orphans. Could this be Trijntje and Mietje Zee? Perhaps they were the inspiration – there were only a handful of children that lived here. In any case, it’s a snapshot of their time in the orphanage, showing how they dressed.
The last child of Bruno and Anna was born in 1747: a son, Jan – who died just before his first birthday.
Trijntje Zee & Evert Hulst
Trijntje and Evert settled in the Heerhugowaard polder beside Noordscharwoude, living on the Donkereweg. Trijntje Zee had left the orphanage in Medemblik in 1764, and married Evert the following year in Heerhugowaard. This was where her brother Bruin Zee was now running a shipyard and boat building business. Although Bruin later moved a short distance to Noordscharwoude in 1767, Trijntje and Evert stayed put and became an established and respected family in the polder.
They had three children: daughter Klaasje born the year after they married, then two sons, Jacob (1770) and Bruin (1772). In 1785, when the children were all teenagers, a situation was developing in the village – and Evert and Trijntje were going to be asked to help. Local man Jan Zwaag came to the village elders with a problem: his mother was unhappy in her marriage. Her name was Maartje Rasvelt, and her husband was Jan Wit. Initially there was suspicion that Jan Wit was not treating her well. The council came to an agreement that they would send her to stay with Evert Hult and Trijntje Zee: perhaps a few weeks with them would alleviate the situation.
Initially, all seemed fine. Maartje was comfortable staying with them, and she paid 3 guilders a week for her expenses. After the three weeks which had been allotted for the stay were up, her husband asked that she stay for three more. Evert and Trijntje agreed. She had, however, started to act a little strangely. Late one evening, when everyone was in bed, she got up and left her room. She quietly crept out of the house. When Evert realized she was missing, he started to search for her, trying all the rooms in the house. There was no sign of her. Eventually, he located her in the haystack in the farm shed, sitting quietly with a little bundle of posessions. “What are you doing here?”, he asked. She told him she afraid that “they” were coming to get her, and so she had to hide. She agreed to go back to her room.
The middle-of-the-night escapades continued. Soon after, she went missing again. This time, she was found outside in the dark, behind the pig pen. On another occasion, she fled the house for the woods nearby. It was dark, and raining, and she was in a miserable state when found. Evert thought it better not to give too clear a description, for the sake of decency. In the final week of her stay, she absconded early one morning. By now used to tracking her down, Evert and Trijnte scoured the usual spots. All to no avail; she was well and truly missing. They called for her son, Jan Zwaag. He came to their home quickly, and together they searched for hours. A long while later, they came across a wheat field, where she was sitting quietly, talking to herself. They both agreed that she was showing all the signs of a mental illness and delerium. The second three weeks were up, and Evert was adamant that her stay would now conclude. On October 1st, 1785, Evert travelled to Alkmaar to give a statement on all the above. Maartje was then taken in by her son-in-law.
Hendrik Hulst
The good reputation of the family was not to last. Evert had a brother, Hendrik, who lived with the family. In January of 1789, Hendrik was returning from an estate auction with Pieter Bakker from Zuidscharwoude. The two had been there together. It was cold, and snow lay on the ground. An argument broke out on the way home. Hendrik struck Pieter in the head, putting him in the snow. Hendrik took out his knife. When Pieter got up again, Hendrik cut him on his left arm, and then further on his hand and through his trousers.
The local bailiff, Cornelis van Foreest, ordered Hendrik to appear before the court in Alkmaar on March 7th, 1789, at 11am. After two further hearings, a sentence was passed on April 18th. Hendrik was ordered to leave the state of Holland and Westfriesland for a period of six year, and not to return during this time, on pain of stronger punishment.
Genealogy
Children of Bruno Zee and Anna Margaretha Meijers:
B1 Hendrik b 23-Oct-1726 Bremen x Engeltje Kist
B2 Margreta b 10-Nov-1728 Bremem x Fredrik Radius
B3 Lüder b 03-Dec-1730 Bremen NFN
B4 Johann b 19-Oct-1732 Bremen + 25-Jun-1736 Medemblik
B5 Bruin b 30-Mar-1735 Medemblik x Jannetje Tromp 1768
B6 Trijntje
b 23-Mar-1738 Medemblik [Bruno Zee & Anna Meijer]
+ 11-Jul-1792 Zuid Scharwoude [>] Aged 54
x Evert Hulst 12-May-1765 Heerhugowaard
b 03-Oct-1736 Medemblik [Jacob Hulst & Claasie Hendriks Lier]
+ 28-Feb-1805 Zuid Scharwoude [>]
Children:
1. Klaasje b 16-Mar-1766, Heerhugowaard
2. Jacobus b 05-Aug-1770, Heerhugowaard
3. Bruin c. 1772, Heerhughowaard x Jantje Brasser
23-Mar-1738 Doop-peet Aaltje Jans at her birth
12-Apr-1753 Entered the Medemblik Orphanage. The three girls arrived on the same day. Most recent arrival before them was Sijmon Vlaar, Jan Vlaar, and Grietje Vlaar - three siblings as well, parents Thijs Vlaar and Maartje Jans, born 43, 44, 46. Thijs Vlaar died 27-Jan-1753. Sijmon Vlaar married Aaltje Schouten 10-Nov-1764. The next arrivals were 12 Mar 1754, then 18 Mar 1757. In sum: very few people in the orphanage, and the three Vlaars and the three Zeekamps would have been close. Grietje Vlaar went to Enkhuizen 1769 [>]
06-Feb-1757 Confirmed Dutch Reformed Church Medemblik. 'Op belijdenis - Trijntje Bruin, with Jannetje Hendriks, Aaltje Jacobs, and Neeltje Dirks' [>] Original image of church book here [>]
01-Jan-1759 Trijntje Bruijn witness at baptism of Trijntje Zeekamp [>]
10-Jan-1762 Trijntje Bruins witness at baptism of Jan Hendriks Zeekamp. [>]
13-Mar-1764 Left the Medemblik Orphanage "Uit ’t huis gekocht voor f. 30”
14-Aug-1765 Trijntje Bruins vertr. met attestatie naar Langedijk [>]
03-Aug-1765 Zuid Scharwoude ('de HH Waard'): ingekomen van Medemblik, Trijntje Bruinsdr Zee [LMR Geref Kerk ZS]. Lived in same place as Bruin Zee & Jannetje Tromp from Aug 1765 onwards.
17-Jun-1769 Ondertrouw Jan Vlaar en Trijntje Bruijn [>]. Not sure who this Trijntje Bruin is. This was Jan Thijszn Vlaar (from the orphanage). Their first child Thijs born 10-Jun-1770 [>], witness Grietje Vlaar. Trijntje was Trijntje Jansdr Bruijn.
23-Jul-1785 Jan Zwaag reports to the Heerhughowaard town elders that his mother, Maartje Rasvelt, is not particularly happy in her marriage to Jan Wit. In a meeting on 30 July, it's agreed that she will spend three weeks with Evert Hulst, living at his home and paying 3 guilders per week for costs. They hope that the "slight mental disorder" she has will disappear. After three weeks, the husband asks that she stay there another three weeks. After 6 weeks, no change. Evert has had enough of her misery, and is not keen to keep her any longer. She is sent to her son-in-law in Limmen. On 15 Oct Evert Hulst and Trijntje Bruin made their declaration (below). During her stay with Evert and Trijntje, she left the house in the middle of the night, and they eventually found her in a field >. Further testimony from Evert is that she went missing another time in the middle of the night, and he eventually found her in the haystack. Another night, he found her outside in the dark behind the pig pen. Finally, in the last week of her stay, she left early one morning. This time she was nowhere to be found. Evert and her son eventually found her in a wheat field. The worst was when they found her in the woods near the house, in such a miserable and wet state that words would not be appropriate to write. She displayed all the signs of mental illness and delerium.
01-Oct-1785 Notarial deed. Attestatie of Evert Hulst and Trijntje Bruin at the requst of couple named Zwaag [>] Given in Alkmaar.
1789 Court Case re. Hendrik Hulst, brother of Evert. Docs >.
30-Jun-1833 Bruin Hulst dies aged 61, profession: schipper.
B7 Anna
b 05-Jun-1740 Medemblik [Bruno Zee & Anna Meijer]
+ 02-Apr-1760 Medemblik [>]
05-Jun-1740 Doop-peet Marta van Koppenhage
12-Apr-1753 Entered the Medemblik Orphanage
20-Apr-1758 Confirmation Dutch Reformed Church Medemblik. 'Op belijdenis - Anna Bruin, Dieuwertje Spaander, Trijntje Klaes + 6 others' [>]
02-Apr-1760 Died in the Orphanage Medemblik aged 19. Listed both in Orphanage register and DTB Medemblik [>]
B8 Mietje
*b 20-Mar-1743 Medemblik [Bruno Zee & Anna Meijer]
+ after 1769 Noordscharwoude
x Jacob Oudt 2-Oct-1769 Noorscharwoude/Alkmaar
* Alkmaar
+
20-Mar-1743 Doop: Doop-peet Trijntje Maars. Jan Frederik Broens pastor.
12-Apr-1753 Entered the Medemblik Orphanage
01-Aug-1762 Confirmation Reformed Church Medemblik. 'Mietje Bruijns op belijdenis with Trijntje Jans Zout and Trijntje Dirks' [>]
10-Aug-1762 Left the Medemblik Orphange, f.30 paid
11-Jul-1768 Met attestatie vert van Medemblik > Noordscharwoude [DTB Medemblik [>] Also here from original church record [>], listing 11 Sept 1768 as departure.
06-Nov-1768 Noordscharwoude: arrived from Medemblik (aged 25)
After 1768 Died Noordscharwoude, date unknown. The entry in the Lidmatenregister in Noorschardwoude shows a mark 'deceased' added some time after her arrival there, but no indication of when. Gaarder?
17-Sep-1769 Marriage banns record Mietje Zees & Jacob Out, both in Noordscharwoude. Registered in Alkmaar, Grote Kerk (Gereformeerd). Groom last lived in Alkmaar. Marriage indicated as 2-Oct-1769 at Noorscharwoude. Discovered record 16-Apr-2022. NFI found on either.
1769 Jacob buys a house in the north end of Noordscharwoude for fl. 275, loan from Bruyn Bruynsz Zee for f. 250. See under Bruyn Zee timeline.
1812 Maartje Oud, overl. geb. te Zuidscharwoude [~1776], dochter van Jacob Oud. Mother not mentioned. Could be dau. of Jacob & Mietje. R>> Zuidscharwoude registers 1776. Two children: Grietje geb 1806 >, Arnoldus van Dijk; Anthonij Pieters Smees.
B9 Jan b 26-Feb-1747 Medemblik + 14-Feb-1748
Documents
