Tombstone Tuesday- Peter Hoogerzeil

Peter Hoogerzeil was my 2x great grandfather, born 24 June 1841 in Beverly, Massachusetts and died on 10 May 1908 in Beverly. He was the son of Peter Hoogerzeil, an immigrant from the Netherlands, and Eunice Stone. He married Mary Etta Healey on 14 March 1870 in Salem, Massachusetts. She was born 19 May 1852, daughter of Joseph Edwin Healy and Matilda Weston of Nova Scotia. Mary outlived her husband another 24 years, and she died in Beverly on 23 July 1932. Their children were Florence (my great grandmother), Lilie May, Alonzo, Edward, Lucy and Isabel.

His daughter, Isabel, married George Sorenson of Norway on 25 April 1936 in Beverly. They had no children. Peter’s son Edward, predeceased Peter in 1907. Alonzo died in 1946 and Lucy in 1931. These children are listed on this stone, photographed in Beverly, but Lilie May, who died as an infant in 1874 is not recorded here.

I have many copies of the patents Peter Hoogerzeil held for his many inventions. He held at least four patents for stove ovens, a glass lamp chimney, a wheelbarrow, an amusement park ride, and one for a steam baking pan that was advertised for many years in the Beverly City Directory and Beverly newspapers. Whilst perusing the city directories for his address on Bartlett Street I ran across the advertisements for his inventions. It paid off to take a few minutes to look through those books, because not only did I find his inventions, but I found that one of his children, Alonzo, had married the girl next door, Mabel Cressey!

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Beverly Evening Times, Monday, 11 May 1908
RESPECTED CITIZEN
Death Sunday of Peter Hoogerzeil
HEART TROUBLE WAS CAUSE OF DEATH
Leaves Widow and Four Children

Peter Hoogerzeil, one of the best known residents of Beverly and for thirty years engaged in the trucking industry in this city, died very suddenly at his home on Bartlett Street Sunday morning.

For some time Mr. Hoogerzeil has been in poor health but arose Sunday morning feeling well. He made preparations to shave himself when he was seized with an attack of heart trouble and died in a few minutes.

Mr. Hoogerzeil was born in Beverly in 1842 and was educated in the public schools of this city. From a boy he took much interest in the seafaring life and has sailed around the world. For a number of years he was a quartermaster on a steamer running to Japan and China and spent a number of years in the deep sea fishing off Japan, Russia and.into the Bering Sea. One of his last trips was to Holland where he visited the home of his father. He established himself in the teaming business in Beverly in 1878 and built up a large and successful business which he conducted up to the time of his death. Mr. Hoogerzeil was of an inventive turn of mind and held patents on many useful articles, a wheelbarrow, and an improved roasting pan meeting with much success and being sold all over the United States.

Mr. Hoogerzeil had one of the finest collections of coins and curios, gathered from all parts of the world, in Essex County and often entertained his friends with delightfully interesting stories concerning their history.

He leaves a widow, one son, Alonzo G., and three daughters, Mrs. Arthur T. Hitchings, Misses Lulu and Isabel Hoogerzeil, all of Beverly.

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To cite/link to this blog post:  Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Tombstone Tuesday - Peter Hoogerzeil", Nutfield Genealogy, posted August 10, 2010, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2010/08/tombstone-tuesday-peter-hoogerzeil.html: accessed [access date]).