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Frederika Vink's parents were Abraham Vink and Teuntje Meeder.
The Meeder family name is rare in the Netherlands although it is considered
an old and distinguished family. Teuntje was born in Delft on December 11,
1803. She was the daughter of George (Johan Georg) Meeder (1770-1843)
and Willemijntje (the diminutive form of Willemina) Boekholt (1774-1820).
Teuntje was named after her maternal grandfather Teunis Boekholt (1746-
1814).
The name Vink (pronounced "Fink") is moderately common and is usually
translated to mean the finch bird. This name originated more than once,
thus not all Vinks are related. There were 7,995 Vinks in 1947. (Spelling
variations are not included in this total.) Most people named Vink lived in the
provinces of North and South Holland and Gelderland. This line of the Vink
family had its historic center in Oudshoorn, just northeast of Zoetermeer
where many Poots lived. Oudshoorn was renamed in 1918 to Alphen aan den
Rijn (or simply Alphen), a reference to its location on the Rhine River. In the
nearby town of Leiden (also spelled Leyden) was a famous restaurant- the
Vink Cafe. Founded in 1768, but disappearing after World War II, it was
famous for its pea soup. It was located next to the river, and was a popular
destination in the winter when people would skate there from all over Zuid-
Holland. Crowds of people would sit at the small round tables eating plates
of steaming soup while observing the skaters among the colorful flags, tents,
and sleighs on the river beside them.
Abraham Vink was born in Delft on December 31, 1807. He was the son of
Willem Vink of Oudshoorn and Adriana Smits. (Smits and Smit are occupation
derived names and, like Smith in English, it is an extremely common name.)
Frederika Vink's middle name, Sophia, sounds unusual for a Dutch name, but
King Willem III (1817-1890) was first married to Sophia of Wurttemberg
(1818-1877), the daughter of Catherine of Russia. Frederika was probably
named in the Queen's honor.
Legal records show that both Abraham Vink and his father Willem were active
in Delft and in The Hague. The family may have owned homes and business
interests in the two locations. These cities in Zuid (South) Holland are only 6
or 7 miles apart.
Some other Poots lived in The Hague. Johannes Poot, born in Vlaardinger-
Ambacht in 1822, was married to Petronella Post, a daughter of Johanna Vink.
The Dutch words for his occupation do not translate clearly, but he appears
to have worked in The Hague as a land development controller and worker.
This could have been an important position. The area west of The Hague was
undergoing complex land use planning and development during the 1800's.
Johannes' sons Willem and Jacob Poot were game wardens for the Grandduke
of Saxon-Weimar, in which function they checked the large dune area from
Zorgvliet to the West dunes (Westduinen). This area west of the main city was
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