Jakob was the son of Jan Vos, market gardener,
wagoner and cattle trader, living in Groningen and Helpman,
and Antje Westerhof (daughter of a nurseryman).
Jakobs grandfather, Jakob Berend Vos had, until his death in 1900,
owned and run a market garden at the east side of the Hereweg
(see map 1832),
inherited from his father.
Jakob's uncle Berend also worked in those gardens.
Had Jakob learned the trade there?
Jakob had been drafted on 8 March 1894 with lottery number 19.
But on 23 March 1894 he was released based on
"physical deficiencies"
(according §.3 of the "rules of visitation").
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Hendrikje was the daughter of Jan Roelof Boddeveld, farmer in Glimmen/Noordlaren, and his wife Anna Douws. There is a photo of Hendrikje of, probably, before her marriage; see at her parents.
Jakob and Hendrikje married in 1899.
Children: 1899 Jan Jakob Berend, 1901 Anna Antje(+), 1904 Jan Roelf,
1905 Gerrit, 1907 Antoon, 1908 Antje Anna (Annie), 1911 Henk,
1912 Anna Jakoba(+).
The names of the children follow the, more or less, normal pattern of
those times.
Jan Jakob Berend after Jakobs father and Jakobs uncle,
Anna Antje after both grandmothers,
Jan Roelf after the maternal grandfather,
Gerrit after fathers uncle and fathers maternal grandfather,
Antoon after Hendrikje's brother,
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Jakob then, in 1902,
starts his own nursery and market garden at the Menneslaan.
The Menneslaan was to the south of the old part
of the town of Groningen;
this alley ran from the Hereweg to the west,
on the location of the present Vechtstraat
(a little south of the land of grandfather Jokob Berend,
sold in 1900).
As of 1902, Jakob advertises as "seed trader"
(see the newspaper clippings).
The nursery (growing vegetables and flower seeds) did well,
especially also during the first World War (1914-1918),
in which The Netherlands was neutral
and provided supplies in all directions.
The map (from 1910) shows the area south of the centre of Groningen.
H = Hereweg; M = entry to the Menneslaan;
W = the house.
R = house at the Rabenhauptstraat,
where Jakob and Hendrikje later retired to;
Z = location of their grave
on the "Zuiderbegraafplaats".
The area of the gardens is marked with a blue dashed line.
Later, son Jan Roelf would also have gardens to the east of the
"Sterrebos".
Grandson Jacob Vos recounts:
The gardens at the Menneslaan were about half a hectare.
There were a few low glashouses (or rather "hot beds")
and open beds, where plants, seeds and vegetables were grown.
There was also a field full with fruit:
morellos, red and black currants, gooseberries, raspberries,
strawberries, plums, etc.
Often the birds took the first and the best fruits.
This angered grandpa.
Opa started the tradition to plant a bed with sweet peas (lathyrus)
in front of the shed where goods were sold
and that cheered up the outfit considerably.
He also had rabbits and there were chicken as well,
so there was always enough to eat!
On a photo, a large group of people is gathered,
a photo most likely made at the Menneslaan
(there are people sitting on vegetable boxes).
Was this photo made at the 25th wedding anniversary
of Jakob and Hendrikje in 1924?
Jakob and Hendrikje sit in the centre of the many members of the family.
To the photo with the names of people
(insofar as known) and the
full original photo (3 MB).
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Jakobs younger brother Berend, who in 1910 had married in Rotterdam and who had become freight skipper, came regularly with his freight barge to Groningen. When he passed the gardens at the west side through the canal the "Hoendiep", he whistled in a special way. In this manner Jakob knew that Berend (after mooring at the Zuiderhaven of Groningen) would soon show up at the Menneslaan. [Recounted by grandson Jacob Vos]
In 1933, Jakob passed the business on to son Jan Roelf and Gerrit (see the newspaper clippings).
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Jakob and Hendrikje then retired to the Rabenhauptstraat 44 (photo from 2009). But each day, Jakob would have gone to the gardens, by a small alley between the houses.
Memories of the garden and nursery activities have been written by grandson Jakob Vos in "de Tuinen". The photo (from 1936) shows the wooden waterpump in the court (with baby Ina, daughter of Jan Roelf and his wife Ali).
Jakob and Hendrikje were always willing to help others,
also outside the family.
When Jakob had died,
the estate turned out to have various outstanding loans.
They of course also provided loans to their children
to perhaps buy a house or start a business.
All children stayed in Groningen.
As mentioned, Jan Roelf continued the nursery.
Jan Jakob Berend, who was mentally not fit,
stayed with Jakob and Hendrikje.
Gerrit started, in 1937, a shop selling vegetables
(and later other specialty food stuff) at the Damsterdiep;
he retained a share in the gardens.
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Henk, de youngest, had a job as barber and with his wife ran at the Rabenhauptstraat 16 a tobacco shop with a neigboorhood library.
Annie married Luwe Brouwer, an accountant.
In 1937 son Gerrit married Klazina Posthumus. The photo album of this couple has, on the page after the marriage pictures, photos of Jakob and Hendrikje (at right). These must have been made around that time.
Jakob died at the Rabenhauptstraat in 1946. The total value of their possessions was then a little over f 100.000. [In currency of 2010 that would be approximately 500.000 Euro.] Hendrikje owned, of course, half of that, the remaining half was inherited in equal parts by Hendrikje and the children collectively. But no money passed then to the children (except that later documents speak of "unregistered loans").
Hendrikje died in 1956. When her estate was sorted out in 1957 (in charge was Jan-Roelf) there was a house at the Verlengde Oosterweg 98-100 where Jan-Roelf had some gardens (valued at f 17.000), some bonds, and outstanding loans to the children and others for a total of about f 28.000 (the others being a carpenter, a shop owner, a shipper and one more person to a total of f 16.000). The business on the Menneslaan as well as the house at the Rabenhauptstraat had, apparently, already changed hands (to Jan-Roelf). [The gardens had to be given up, in 1957, because the city of Groningen expanded; see de Tuinen.]
The grave of Jakob and Henrdikje is on the Zuiderbegraafplaats of Groningen,
at just 500 m from the Menneslaan gardens
(see map: Z).
Their oldest son Jan Jakob Berend eventually
was admitted to a nursery home, the "Treslinghuis".
He died in 1970.
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First photo: the grave of Jakob and Hendrikje is marked by the long stone
in front of the tree.
Their unmarried son Jan Jakob Berend is burried there, too.
The location is marked on the map above with the letter Z.
The big tree is on the grave of
grandfather J.B.Vos.
Second photo: upper part of the grave stone with the names of
Jakob and Hendrikje. Three letters have disappeared.
Note that here JAKOB is JACOB....
Back to the ancestry of JV & HB. To the dutch version of this text.