James Vrooman
ID # 1477, (1794-1871)
| Father | Adam Vrooman (1753-1810) |
| Mother | Margaret Mattice (1759-) |
| Birth | James Vrooman was born on 22 April 1794. |
| Christening | He was christened on 19 March 1807 at St. Mark's Anglican Church, Niagara-On-The-Lake. |
| Marriage | He married Jane Purdy in 1820. The year 1820 for the marriage of James Vrooman and Jane Purdy will be approximate. Page 112 of the Vrooman Family History of 1949 states that James married Jane Purdy of Cobourg in 1822. Considering that their son Adam is believed to have been born in 1821, the year of 1820 seems more likely. |
| Marriage | He married Rhoda Johnson on 27 October 1838 at Brock Twp., Home District. The Marriage Registers of Upper Canada/Canada West, Vol. 11: Part 2, Home District, 1835-1843, compiled by Dan Walker, Ruther Burkholder & Fawne Stratford-Devai, Global Heritage Press, 2000, page 73. Marriages by Rev'd Cornelius Flumerfelt, Wesleyan Methodist Minister James Vroman to Roda Johnstone, both of Brock. 27 Oct. 1838, by banns. Rev. Flumerfelt. Wit. James Johnston and Eliza Johnston. |
| Death | He died on 4 September 1871 at Vroomanton, Ontario, at age 77. |
| Burial | He was buried at Vroomanton United Church Cemetery. |
| Note | Initially, we take our information for James' wives and children from the 1949 Vrooman Family book. Further confirming information for most of the children has been found. A baptism record for James appears in 1807, St. Mark's Anglican Church, at Niagara-on-the-Lake. See Vital Records of Upper Canada / Canada West, Vol. 1: Part 2, Niagara District, 1792-1849, compiled by Dan Walker & Fawne Stratford-Devai, 2000, Global Heritage Press, Milton, Ontario: 19 Mar. 1807, James, son of Adam and Margaret Vrooman. Page 66 of the 1949 Vrooman Family history dates James' birth as 22 April 1794, and confirms his baptism as being on 19 March 1807 at St. Mark's Anglican. This is no doubt a late baptism, however census information for James suggests that his year of birth was closer to 1797. Since census information is frequently inaccurate, and since the 1794 birth year for James probably is based on reasonably reliable family records, we will accept a birth year of 1794 for the time being. The 1949 book says James died on 4 September, 1871, at Vroomanton. He was living as of the time the 1871 census was taken. A transcription of James' gravestone confirms his date of death, but no registration of his death has been found. A transcription of Vroomanton United Church Cemetery and some surrounding cemeteries is available from Durham Genealogical Resources and to be found at their website. James Vrooman's will is to be found on microfilm at the Archives of Ontario. See GS1Reel 1150 Surrogate Court, Ontario County, Whitby, Wills Nbr 604-717, 1870-1872, Grant Book 87, Grant 677. The will is appended with peripheral probate papers and the whole file runs to 19 pages. Mileage varies as to the quantity and quality of genealogical information to be found in wills, but James' will mentions all his living children (only his first born son Adam is predeceased). In the case of his daughters, whether married or widowed, their husbands' names are mentioned. This agrees with information that we have from other sources. The tiny, fenced Vroomanton United Church Cemetery is to be found at the intersection of concession 7 and sideroad 17a in Brock Township. This was visited in August of 2013 and most stones have fallen flat and are partially or entirely covered with sod. James Vrooman's piller stone still stands and is in readable condition. Rhoda's memorial is carved on this stone as well and she is no doubt buried here. William Vrooman (1849-1938) has a granite square for a memorial and it is bolted to the piller stone on the side opposite to his father's inscription. James Vrooman is recorded on his gravestone as 'Lieut.-Col. James Vrooman'. James was clearly a private at the time of the War of 1812 in the Glengarry Fencibles, a militia unit. It is now possible to confirm James' later rank as a Lieutenant Colonel. We take as our source the 'Militia List for Canada West', Major Joshua Thompson, Toronto, 1851. Page 38 shows for the 17th Batt., York, Lieut.-Col. James Vrooman, commission date April 4, 1847. How James came to this rank or his years of service in the York militia has yet to be determined. |
Children of James Vrooman and Jane Purdy |
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Children of James Vrooman and Rhoda Johnson |
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| Last Edited | 9 Nov 2020 |