Mertz Genealogy - Person Sheet
Mertz Genealogy - Person Sheet
Name7G GM Margaret Souplis 
Birthabout 1686
Memo(family bible)
Deathafter 1724
Father8G GF Andries Souplis (1634-1726)
Mother8G GM Anneke
Spouses
Birth26 November 1676
Memo(find-a-grave)
Death12 September 1724
Memo(find-a-grave)
BurialGermantown Mennonite Cemetery, Germantown, PA
Father8G GF Dirck Keyser (1635-1714)
Mother8G GM Elizabeth Ter Himpel (1637-1681)
Parent-Proof notes for 7G GM Margaret Souplis
We know for sure that she was born Margaret Souplis since her husband, Peter Keyser, named as two of his Executors his wife Margaret and her brother Andrew Souplis.
From what is purported to be fragments from the family bible that had been destroyed, the five children of Andries were all said to have been by wife Anneckie. The bible further indicates that Androis arrived Holland in 1682 and America in 1684 and probably married Anneckie while in Holland. Only son Andrew, the third child, had a known birth date, 1688. Margaret was apparently the second child so I can conjecture she was born maybe 1686, meaning after Andries arrived America. The bible also confirms that Androis did marry, second, Gertrude.
The problem for me is that Peter Keyser, in his will, made provision for his mother-in-law Elizabeth. Who was Elizabeth? This is a big discordant note for me and frankly I’m stumped.
From what is purported to be fragments from the family bible that had been destroyed, the five children of Andries were all said to have been by wife Anneckie. The bible further indicates that Androis arrived Holland in 1682 and America in 1684 and probably married Anneckie while in Holland. Only son Andrew, the third child, had a known birth date, 1688. Margaret was apparently the second child so I can conjecture she was born maybe 1686, meaning after Andries arrived America. The bible also confirms that Androis did marry, second, Gertrude.
The problem for me is that Peter Keyser, in his will, made provision for his mother-in-law Elizabeth. Who was Elizabeth? This is a big discordant note for me and frankly I’m stumped.
Research notes for 7G GM Margaret Souplis
Hannah Roach says Margaret married second Michael Eccard or Eckert after Peter (who she calls Peter Dirck) died.
Research notes for Pieter Dirck (Spouse 1)
Two deeds, one written in 1743 and one in 1744, mark the sale of the lands of Peter Keyser to Dirck Keyser by his mother who has since remarried and all his siblings. I’m not sure if the two deeds reflected different land parcels of Peter’s or both dealt with the same parcel.
http://takingthelongerview.org/index.php/2017/11/2...and-margaret-keyser/
http://takingthelongerview.org/index.php/2017/11/2...and-margaret-keyser/
My Comments notes for Pieter Dirck (Spouse 1)
More from the 1898 address by Charles S Keyser.
“Pieter Dirck Keyser, the then surviving child of our first ancestor here, and the ancestor of the whole family now living, was born in Amsterdam, November 25th, 1676, and was twelve years of age on his arrival. He married when twenty-four years of age, Margaret Souplis, daughter of Andreas Souplis, a Burgher of New York, and lived twenty-four years thereafter; he died, leaving a widow and numerous family....The seventh, Elizabeth Keyser, named after his mother, and her grandmother; married Peter Pennebacker. The eighth child, named after her grandmother and aunt, Anneke Keyser; married John Pennebacker. Two brothers, Peter and John Pennebacker, marrying these two sisters, of our family. From one or another of the remaining nine children living at the time of his death all the descendants of Dirck Keyser, the first emigrant, either in the male or female lines, have their origin.
The will of Pieter Dirck Keyser for its kind consideration for his wife's mother and the confidence it shows in his wife's future care of his children, merits mention here. He died in 1724, 12th of September; and his will devises and bequeaths his whole estate to his wife during her life if she remains his widow, and if not then provides for his children, giving her still a large share of his estate. He wills further then, that his wife shall take all possible care of his old mother-in-law, Elizabeth; if she be helpless or in want of some attendance, that then his wife if she shall be living shall assist her, with all necessaries for her livelihood, and if his said wife shall die before his said mother-in-law, that then his executors shall take the same care for his mother-in-law; that she should be so taken care of and maintained out of his estate. He was naturalized with his father 7th of March, 1691, and subsequently by act of Assembly 1708. He was a subscriber to the Pastorius school on the 19th of May 1708.
One of the last acts of his life was to join in a subscription to build the front wall of the upper Germantown burial ground which was begun May, 1724, the year in which he died. He was a member of the Mennonite church when it was first built of logs, in 1708, and was very probably one of its builders.
There is in the Scriptures and in other ancient tomes a peculiar use and recurrence of the number seven and its multiples, with Peter Dirck Keyser the number four and its multiples were a part of his fatalities; he was twenty-four years of age when he married, he lived twenty-four years of age when he married, he lived twenty-four years after his marriage, he was married on the 4th of September, he died on the 12th of September, the year of his birth was 1676, a multiple of four, and he died in 1724."
Charles Keyser consistently calls this man Peter Dirck Keyser, but everywhere I have seen he was called only Peter. Moreover, he had a brother named Dirck so I find his name a little curious. However, in the book commemorating the 1888 reunion, there is a facsimile of Pieter Dirck Keyser’s signature, so who am I to argue?
I have a copy of Peter’s will written 5 Aug 1724 and proved 15 October 1724. He mentioned his son Peter who seems to have been his only child at maturity, he mentioned but doesn’t name other children and also mentioned wife Margaret and her brother Andrew Souplis.
He did also, as said above, make provision for his mother-in-law Elizabeth, that Margaret shall take care of her. Now this is very strange since all my sources on the Souplis family say Margaret’s mother (who would be Peter’s mother-in-law) was named Anneke, though she had died and her father had married second Goetra. Goetra did live until 1738, but her own husband would still have been alive at the time Peter Keyser wrote his will.
Peter’s mother was named Elizabeth, but she had died before the family came to America. Did his father marry a third time another Elizabeth and was Peter referring to his (latest) step-mother as his mother-in-law?
“Pieter Dirck Keyser, the then surviving child of our first ancestor here, and the ancestor of the whole family now living, was born in Amsterdam, November 25th, 1676, and was twelve years of age on his arrival. He married when twenty-four years of age, Margaret Souplis, daughter of Andreas Souplis, a Burgher of New York, and lived twenty-four years thereafter; he died, leaving a widow and numerous family....The seventh, Elizabeth Keyser, named after his mother, and her grandmother; married Peter Pennebacker. The eighth child, named after her grandmother and aunt, Anneke Keyser; married John Pennebacker. Two brothers, Peter and John Pennebacker, marrying these two sisters, of our family. From one or another of the remaining nine children living at the time of his death all the descendants of Dirck Keyser, the first emigrant, either in the male or female lines, have their origin.
The will of Pieter Dirck Keyser for its kind consideration for his wife's mother and the confidence it shows in his wife's future care of his children, merits mention here. He died in 1724, 12th of September; and his will devises and bequeaths his whole estate to his wife during her life if she remains his widow, and if not then provides for his children, giving her still a large share of his estate. He wills further then, that his wife shall take all possible care of his old mother-in-law, Elizabeth; if she be helpless or in want of some attendance, that then his wife if she shall be living shall assist her, with all necessaries for her livelihood, and if his said wife shall die before his said mother-in-law, that then his executors shall take the same care for his mother-in-law; that she should be so taken care of and maintained out of his estate. He was naturalized with his father 7th of March, 1691, and subsequently by act of Assembly 1708. He was a subscriber to the Pastorius school on the 19th of May 1708.
One of the last acts of his life was to join in a subscription to build the front wall of the upper Germantown burial ground which was begun May, 1724, the year in which he died. He was a member of the Mennonite church when it was first built of logs, in 1708, and was very probably one of its builders.
There is in the Scriptures and in other ancient tomes a peculiar use and recurrence of the number seven and its multiples, with Peter Dirck Keyser the number four and its multiples were a part of his fatalities; he was twenty-four years of age when he married, he lived twenty-four years of age when he married, he lived twenty-four years after his marriage, he was married on the 4th of September, he died on the 12th of September, the year of his birth was 1676, a multiple of four, and he died in 1724."
Charles Keyser consistently calls this man Peter Dirck Keyser, but everywhere I have seen he was called only Peter. Moreover, he had a brother named Dirck so I find his name a little curious. However, in the book commemorating the 1888 reunion, there is a facsimile of Pieter Dirck Keyser’s signature, so who am I to argue?
I have a copy of Peter’s will written 5 Aug 1724 and proved 15 October 1724. He mentioned his son Peter who seems to have been his only child at maturity, he mentioned but doesn’t name other children and also mentioned wife Margaret and her brother Andrew Souplis.
He did also, as said above, make provision for his mother-in-law Elizabeth, that Margaret shall take care of her. Now this is very strange since all my sources on the Souplis family say Margaret’s mother (who would be Peter’s mother-in-law) was named Anneke, though she had died and her father had married second Goetra. Goetra did live until 1738, but her own husband would still have been alive at the time Peter Keyser wrote his will.
Peter’s mother was named Elizabeth, but she had died before the family came to America. Did his father marry a third time another Elizabeth and was Peter referring to his (latest) step-mother as his mother-in-law?