The stone marker sign at the entrance to the family cemetery. This cemetery is the final resting place of Captain John Outwater from the local militia who fought in the Revolutionary War and his family.
The memorial to Captain Outwater in the center of the cemetery dedicated to his contributions to Revolutionary War
Captain John Outwater during the Revolutionary War
When John J. Outwater was born on 9 February 1780, in Hackensack, Bergen, New Jersey, United States, his father, Captain John Outwater, was 33 and his mother, Hendrickje Dirck Lozier, was 34. He married Cathalina Van Bussum on 1 February 1813, in Old First Reformed Church, Passaic, Passaic, New Jersey, United States.
They were the parents of at least 4 sons. He died on 25 September 1842, in Wilson, Wilson, Niagara, New York, United States, at the age of 62, and was buried in Glenwood, Lewiston, Lewiston, Niagara, New York, United States.
The original entrance to the cemetery must have been on Moonachie Avenue in the distant past.
The original graves of Captain John Outwater and his wife, Louise Lozier
Across from their graves is the memorial to the family
Various members of the Outwater family including parents, brothers and sisters and children are buried here.
The grave of Jacob Outwater and his family
The tombstone of Jacob Outwater
The grave of Jacob’s son who died as an infant
The graves of George Outwater and his wife, Ann Van Note
I think this is the grave of George Outwater’s first wife, Mary
Buried outside the family plot is the grave of Henry Cordes
The Outwater family cemetery sits on a small hill overlooking a Quick Check store and gasoline station. Talk about modern progress.
I took a quick tour of the cemetery:
My video of the Outwater Family Cemetery and the grave of Captain John Outwater of Revolutionary War fame.
It is a family cemetery started before 1792 on land originally owned by Abraham Hopper. The Hopper family was the first to settle Ho-Ho-Kus, then known as Hoppertown. Many Dutch families also settled the area including the Zabriskie, Ackerman, Blauvelt, Bamper, Banta, and Terhune families. Most were members of the Old Paramus Reformed Church nearby.
While family members were commonly interred in the church graveyard, some chose to bury family members in small local plots closer to their residences. Such was the case with the Ackermans who had a plot on the northeast side of town near the Saddle River, and the Hopper and Zabskie families who were buried in the small plot in Hoppertown near the Ho-Ho-Kus brook.
The small cemetery
The historic sign
The original family cemetery of the Hopper family when the original name of the area was ‘Hoppertown’ for the family whose land dominated the area. While some would bury their loved ones at the family church’s graveyards, some preferred their loved ones closer and would be buried on the family farm. Some families picked the highest point, usually a small hill that would over look the land. This particular cemetery is located in a small cove at the bend of the road.
This small historical cemetery is another example of history lost in time. The generations of distant family members no longer care for this historical spots and they were left for the elements. This cemetery was cared for by Veterans of the Wars and the Boy Scouts who put a lot of care in it. Now it is under the Borough of Ho Ho Kus, NJ.
The history of the cemetery
The history of the Zabriskie family
The family plot map of the tombstones.
The small family burial plot common to farms in Bergen County at that time.
Who is buried here:
(From the Borough of Ho Ho Kus, NJ website)
There were a number of descendants from the Hopper and Zabriskie families who were interred in the small cemetery between 1792 and 1867. In 1910, an archivist named John Neafie from New York City cataloged the names on the headstones and provided a copy to the Bergen County Historical Society. Some of those appearing in this catalog included:
Garret Hopper, died Feb.17, 1792, age 69 years
Elsey Hopper, wife of Garret Hopper, died March 8, 1816, age 89 years
Mary Zabriskie, wife of Henry Zabriskie, died June 3, 1821, age 69 years
Francis W. Perry, wife of James H. Perry Esq. and daughter of H. and Sally Zabriskie, born June 25, 1814, died Nov. 27, 1834
Henry Zabriskie, died Feb.23, 1839, 22 years
Henry H. Zabriskie, died Feb. 27,1832, age 46 years
Sally Zabriskie, wife of H.H. Zabriskie, died May 11, 1829, age 41 years
Garret H. Zabriskie, died Aug. 6, 1867, age 79 years
Caty Van Voorhase, wife of Garret H. Zabriskie, died Nov. 6, 1833, age 41 years
Garret Zabriskie, son of Henry and Lavinia Banta, died Oct. 16, 1832, age 4 years
Ann Bamper, wife of Jacob Bamper, died Feb. 26, 1844, age 90 years
C.I.Z. (probably refers to Casparis, son of Mary Zabriskie)
The grave of Henry Zabriskie
The graves Henry and Garrett Zabriske
The graves Garrett Zabriske and Francis Perry
The grave of Caty Van Voorhase
The grave of Sally Zabriskie
The grave of Francis Perry
The cemetery is a testament to the family and their love of the land they owned.
The History of the Hopper and Zabriskie families in the area:
(From the Borough of Ho Ho Kus, NJ website)
The Hopper’s owned homesteads in the center of town on both sides of the brook and operated a grist mill. During the American Revolution, they were committed to the patriot cause and served with the Bergen County Militia. The British made several raids into Hoppertown during the war while foraging for military stores, farm animals, and other goods. One notable siege took place at Hoppertown on April 16, 1780. John J. Hopper was seriously wounded. His home and those of his brothers were burned down. The grist mill on the brook was also destroyed. The Zabriskie family would later acquire and occupy the original Hopper residence which was placed under siege. The building is now known as the Ho-Ho-Kus Inn & Tavern. Materials from John Hopper’s original house razed during the raid are believed to be incorporated into the foundation of the inn.
Around 1830, John J. Zabriskie took up residence in the former Hopper home, which became known as the Mansion House. The Zabriskie’s owned several farms and buildings nearby and built a dam and mill on the brook. The Zabriskie family also acquired the Hopper family cemetery on the hillside adjacent to the mill. When the first Zabriskie mill dam breached in 1862, John Jacob would build a much grander dam out of brownstone blocks to create Sylvan Lake while at the same time expanding cotton mill operations.
The Hopper Farm Family Cemetery is a reminder of what happens when time passes you by and the world changes around you. I went in search for the grave of Andrew Hopper, a veteran of the Revolutionary War. I could not find it.
This historic cemetery is hidden from the road behind two large homes on a tiny hill in the back woods. The only way to access the cemetery is to walk down the utility road off the main road, walk through the woods and walk up through the bush to back of two families back yards.
You can tell by the rotting fallen fence that this cemetery was once enclosed but the fence has since fallen and the cemetery in disarray. Still there is a quiet elegance to it.
The cemetery is in desperate need of clean up and repair as tombstones are broken, fallen and discolored.
Some of the family tombstones have fallen. Still you can see members of the Hopper and Demarest families buried here.
Members of the Vanderbryck family Maryann and Rachel
The grave of David Hopper
The grave of Susan Storms, wife of one of the family members buried here.
The grave of Peter Bogart, a member of the extended family
One of the broken tombstones that I could not read
Another tombstone in loving memory of a name I could not read
The broken stone of Fredrick Storms grave
The family cemetery sits quiet and neglected in the woods. Most of the tombstones broken and discolored and hard to read.
I took one last look as I walked down the hill and said a prayer to these forgotten people. One what must have once been the family farm sits a development of extremely large and well maintained McMansions. This is the irony of this once prominent family.
The family buried at this cemetery:
(Bergen County Genealogical Society website)
Copied July 4, 1913, By John Neafie New York City.
1. Abraham Verbryck, d. Jan. 8, 1843 ae. 63-11-8. 2. John P. Ackerman, d. Feb. 24-1829 ae. 34-1-4. 3. Rachel, wife of John P. Ackerman, d. Oct. 4,1844 ae. 49-11-22. 4. Martha Ann, d. Apr. 6, 1835 ae. 1 yr. 8 da. 5. Martha Ann, d. Feb. 5, 1837 ae. 2 mos. 7 da. 6. Rachel Ann, d. July 12,1838 ae. 6 mos. Children of Abraham and Susan Hopper. 7. Peter G. Bogert d. 5 Dec. 1859 ae. 76-6-16. 8. Mary his wife d. 5 April 1866 ae. 72-6-21. 9. David Berthoif d. 8 Jan. 1851 ae. 85-2-29. 10. Catharine Storms his wife d. 19 June 1864 ae. 87-2-5. 11. Peter, son of Stephen D. and Eliza Berthoif, d. 19 Nov.1843 ae. 1-7-2. 12. Elizer L. Ramsey (My Mother), wife of Stephen D. Bertholf d. 18 Dec. 1876 ae. 56-7-5. 13. Stephen S. Berthoif (Brother), d. 28 Oct. 1875 ae. 21-11-17.(same stone as above.) 14. Frederick Storms d. 20 Feb. 1826 in 54th yr. 15. Alice, widow of above, d. 6 Jan. 1859, ae. 81-6-25. 16. John, son of Frederick and Alice Storms d. 29 Apr. 1852 ae. 37-7-10. 17. Susan B. Storms, wf. of Stites Miller d. at San Francisco, Cal. 16 Dec. 1863 ae. 60 y. 18. Eliza, wf. of Philip Vantassel d. 10 Sept. 1830 ae. 29 y.21 d. 19. Samuel V. Codington b. 19 Jan. 1824 d. 30 Oct. 1834. 20. Mary Ann Verbryck, wf. of William Codington b. 9 Sept.1802 d. 17 Feb. 1835. 21. Samuel Verbryck b. 15 Nov. 1780 d. 16 June 1847. 22. Rachel his wife b. 5 Aug. 1778 d. 13 Dec. 1864. 23. Conrod Lines d. 20 Dec. 1839 ae. 66-2-8 (footstone C. L.) 24. Garret G., son of Philip and Jane Hopper, d. 17 Apr. 1833 ae. 15 mos. 25. Rachel Bogert d. 22 Oct. 1793 ae. 70 y. 22 d. widow of Lucas Bogert. 26. Rachel dau. of Lucas Bogert d. 21 Feb. 1791 ae. 30-10-4. 27. Lucas Bogert d. 2 Sept. 1777 ae. 57 y. 4 m. 28. Maria Mandevil, wf. of Steven Bartolf, b. 26 May 1736 d.22 Feb. 1813 ae. 76-8-27. 29. Aaron G. son of Patrick and Sarah M. Cronk d. 25 Nov.1861 ae. 6 m. 29 d.
The Voorhis Family Burying Ground was once part of the extensive farm owned by Henry Van Voorhis. This small burial plot houses this branch of the family and sits in what used to be the southeastern section of the farm. Now it sits behind a small house in need of a good lawn cutting.
The historic sign of the Voorhis Burying Ground
The inside of the Voorhis Burial Ground
What is sad about these small family cemeteries is that I am sure that the families never thought to the future when the land would be sold off and the family would move on. The Voorhis and Demarest names still dot the landscape of Bergen County but these tiny plots are lost to the current generations.
The gravesite of Lucas Van Voorhis
The grave of Mary Demarest, who was the wife of James
The one thing that I like about this particular cemetery is that someone in town had done their research on this cemetery and each grave marker was tastefully recreated in separate historic signs right next to the graves as the tombstones have worn out over the years.
The grave of Hannah Voorhis
The grave of Henry Van Voorhis, the first person buried in the site.
This was the first person buried here and the former owner of the farm, Henry Van Voorhis, whose line of the family had once owned this farm of several hundred acres.
The grave of Ouselche Voorhis
The grave of Cornelius Voorhis. I could not believe how many small children were buried in these cemeteries.
I was impressed by how organized and well researched this cemetery was with all the markers. I just needs a good lawn cutting.
The grave of Albert Voorhis, son of the Revolutionary veteran, Albert Voorhis
The grave of Henry Voorhis Sr,
The full view of the cemetery as I was leaving
This quiet and respectful looking cemetery now sits in the back of someone’s home looking lost and forgotten but when you really look at all the historical signs and read them to yourself, their memories still linger on. The family will never truly be forgotten.
Visiting a Museum: The Unique, Unusual, Obscure and Historical 