Gleysteen, Dirk Jan 1828-1904 & Klazina VanDer Linden Family

GLEYSTEEN, VANDERLINDEN, KLOOSTER, VANDERGIESSEN

Posted By: Wilma J. Vande Berg - volunteer (email)
Date: 12/23/2022 at 06:30:44

Gleysteen, Dirk Jan 1828-1904 & Klazina VanDer Linden Family

This biography was compiled by Wilma J. Vande Berg of the Greater Sioux County Genealogical Society and taken from various identified sources. The purpose was to find as much about the Dirk Jan Gleysteen family that was available from local sources. When family information is taken from various sources it is often found that the information varies from one source to another. Often birth places and dates are listed differently in various family reports. The information in this biography was stated as found in the source addressed.

A semblance of the life and times of Sioux County pioneers can be read about in several Sioux County books. “The Story of Sioux County” by Charles Dyk which gives a very colorful account of pioneer life with its joys and hardships. The book “Siouxland A History of Sioux County” by Nelson Nieuwenhuis gives great historical accounts of the area. The “1908 Sioux County Atlas” has historical accounts of the various townships of Sioux County. Also, the ‘Sioux County Iowa digital archives’ newspapers can be googled as such, and can be searched for pioneer's names that could lead to more items of interest in their daily life. The Centennial Book Alton, Iowa 1883-1983 had many references to the Gleysteen family members.

The compiler of this biography chose to have historical information in books disclosed first, then family history statistics along with the children’s lineage and then last the biographical obituaries of various family members.

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SIOUX COUNTY BOOKS – Selected excerpts on the articles of the Gleysteen Families

‘SIOUXLAND A HISTORY OF SIOUX COUNTY’ page 176 second paragraph from the end of the page and continued on page 177.

Dirk Gleysteen Sr. came to Sioux County with his family in 1871, and first settled on a farm near East Orange. While still in Pella, being a carpenter by trade, he was asked by Henry Hospers, to build a store and a house in Orange City. Hospers had decided to move to Sioux County as soon as he could get his business affairs in Pella settled.

After finishing these buildings, Gleysteen set up a lumber, coal and grain business in East Orange, but continued to live on the farm for while.

One day, Dirk V. Gleysteen, son of Dirk Sr., who was then only about a year old, had a harrowing experience. He told about the incident as it was related to him after he had grown older. “We had no well on our farm and our livestock was watered in the Floyd river, from which we got out drinking water. My sisters and brothers took me along in a clothing basket and set me upon a narrow plank bridge while they filled the barrels. My movements dislodged the basket which fell into the water and I floated down the stream to where John Schuller was fishing. Thinking me another Moses, he acted the part of Pharaoh’s daughter and fished me out.

Dick V. Gleysteen graduated from Northwestern Academy in 1887, in the third class to graduate form that institution. He then obtained a degree in medicine from the Medical School at the University of Michigan in 1895. He practiced his profession at Alton a few years and then moved to Lamberton, Minnesota. After practicing in several communities, he retired to live in California in 1952. He died at the age of 81 years. He is reported to have delivered 3600 babies during his career of 41 years as a family physician.

Richard (Dick) Gleysteen, brother to Dirk V., was born in 1881, and graduated from Northwestern Academy in 1897. He received a degree in medicine from Rush Medical School at Chicago in 1905, practiced one year in Sheldon, Iowa, and then moved to Alton, where he was a physician for 38 years.

William H. Gleysteen, another brother, graduated from Northwestern Academy in 1900, and then went to China as a missionary under the Presbyterian Board of Missions. He was stationed near his sister, Cynthia, at Peking. When political conditions became unsettled, Rev. William Gleysteen returned to the United States and served several churches in this country.

Cynthia Gleysteen married Adrian Peter Zwemer, a brother of Dr. Samual M. Zwemer. Adrian entered into business and law, and for some years was a real estate broker in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. At the age of 34 he became seriously ill with pneumonia and died. Cynthia Zwemer then completed her education and became a missionary teacher in Peking. When political conditions made it necessary to leave China, she returned to the States. After a few months she obtained a teaching position in the American Mission College at Assuit, and later at a similar college in Cairo, Egypt.

ALTON CENTENNIAL BOOK 1883-1983 has many pages with tidbits on members of the Gleysteen family members.
Pages 12 AND 13 During the winter of 1880 the shortage of fuel became an acute problem. When the trains could not get through with a supply of coal, that little coal there was, was parceled out by the bucket. At one point people became so desperate for fuel that when a coal train, bound for another destination, stopped to take on water at the East Orange Station, men swarmed onto one of the cars and shoveled the coal onto the ground, emptying a whole car. Then they returned and carried away the coal in wagons, wheelbarrows or whatever came to hand. The railroad agent later approached Mr. Gleysteen and told him the railroad officials had written him and expected that the coal be paid for.
Mr. Gleysteen replied that he and his boys would pay for what they had taken when shown the letter. The agent never showed the letter. Later shipments of coal came through destined for East Orange but the fuel continued scarce all winter and no family was allowed more than 2,000 pounds. People had to turn to other types of fuel. Some had to burn ear corn or railroad ties. They had to dig through the deep snow to dig out cornstalks and hay to burn. For some the winter was so rough that life could be hardly sustained. When the food was gone they resorted to eating boiled wheat and corn.
Page 73-74 summary – organization of the Reformed church at Alton 1877, Dirk Gleysteen, Hermanus de Kraay and Boot Smits were on the committee to see how many would join and about 27 families joined most transferred from Orange City.
Page 183 has a picture of the Gleysteen Family at Alton Iowa, circa 1923, with over 30 family members pictures. See this web page: http://iagenweb.org/sioux/photos/GleysteenDirk_wifeKlazina.htm

GLEYSTEENS IN AMERICA by Dirk Vander Linden Gleysteen 1942 Included herein is a Brief Synopsis of the Work by Rick Wicks (son of Dorothy née Gleysteen)

**Submitter’s Note: About the mid 2000-2010, Wilma J. Vande Berg, the submitter of this biography, worked with Dr. Rick Wicks, a descendant of a brother (Jan Gleysteen) of Dr. Dirk VanderLinden Gleysteen, the author. The Submitter and Dr. Wicks worked together on typing up an edited copy of the manuscript taken from files of Dr. Dirk V. Gleysteen in 1942. It gives great insight into the life and times of the family. A book was made as a result of this work done by Rick Wicks and printed by the Greater Sioux County Iowa Genelogical Society This ‘one of kind’ book is in the family history section of the Sioux Center library. It does not circulate but exceptions can be made by contacting the submitter of this biography. Here is a synopsis of this work by Rick Wicks.**

Rick’s Synopsis - With invaluable help from (Gleysteen-descended) Carole Cropley and (pure genealogical volunteer) Wilma J. Vande Berg, who each digitized (that is, typed up, on computer) half of the manuscript – and then from my (Swedish) wife Ellinor Garbring, who read the whole thing to me so I could proofread it – we got this wonderful manuscript from “samizdat” – photocopies passed around among relatives – into a modern form. Beyond proofing I also corrected a few obvious typos or grammatical or spelling errors or the like. In places it could benefit from further editing, I believe, while chapter titles, maps, pictures, and an index would be great additions, but we haven’t yet been able to accomplish all that.

As Dirk explains in a late chapter, he’d always wanted to be a writer, but went to medical school because that’s what his parents were willing to pay for. This work was clearly a labor of love.

I found it tempting to believe all the details that Dirk relates, for example, about life in the Netherlands before Dirk Gleysteen (the author’s father) left Hoorn perhaps as early as 1842 (chapter 1), and about life in Gelderland before (his eventual wife) Klazina van der Linden and her family emigrated to Iowa some years later (chapters 2 and 3).

But beyond conversations and passing details that he most likely couldn’t have known about, he appears to have fictionalized the van der Linden family’s membership in the Scholte party which entered the U.S. at Baltimore and founded Pella, Iowa, in 1847, whereas ship-arrival records show the VDL family arriving in New Orleans in 1853.

In any case, it’s a good story. And in my own case, a great uncle on my maternal grandmother’s side, Hendrik Hospers, was indeed among the Scholte party, the first of his family to emigrate, at age 17, scouting for land for the rest of the family, who followed in 1849.

Chapter four describes the courtship of Klazina by Dirk. Later chapters describe their further migration to found Alton and Orange City in Sioux County in 1870, led by the aforementioned Hendrik Hospers. One year there was a plague of locusts, another year a winter of deep snows that came early and lasted long. The farms were largely self-sufficient, and the processes of butchering meats and preserving them and other foods is described. Someone imports a deconstructed Dutch windmill and erects it again so the settlers can grind their grain.

Finally there’s a section where Dirk theorizes the effect on character of growing up on the prairie. This was presumably written during the 1930s when ideas of racial characteristics were popular, and Dirk also discusses the contributions of the Dutch to forming American character.
SIOUX COUNTY DIGITAL NEWSPAPER FILES found at Digital Archives of the Sioux County Libraries :: The Community History Archive Of Sioux County Iowa (siouxcounty.advantage-preservation.com) Much can found in general searches for the name ‘Gleysteen’ , in the years 1872-1900 came up with over 1000 Gleysteen hits of articles in the local newspapers. Much could be learned about the family’s life over the years.

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GLEYSTEEN FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH – Several family trees were found on public member trees on Ancestry.com, which were submitted by others, information not totally verified by this BIOS submitter. Where possible conformation research was done through www.wiewaswie.nl in the Netherlands records.

Dirk J. Gleysteen was born 12 Jan 1828 Hoorn, Noord Holland, Netherlands, source was the actual Netherlands birth record. (Note: He was not born at Hoorn, Terschelling, Friesland as recorded in several public member trees on ancestry.com) He died 9 Nov 1904 Alton, Sioux, Iowa. His parents were Jan Gleijsteen 1788-1855 and Trijntje Klooster 1788-1852. He married Klazina Van Der Linden on 17 Aug 1855 at Pella, Iowa.

Klaziena ‘Zina’ Van Der Linden was born 9 February 1836 Vuren Gelderland, Netherlands and died 23 Oct 1915 at Alton Iowa. Her Netherlands birth record lists her as Klaziena van der Linden born to Gijsbert van der Linden 1811-1901 and Cornelia van der Giessen 1810-1873. She died 23 Oct 1915 at Alton, Sioux, Iowa.

CHILDREN of Dirk Gleysteen and Klazina Van Der Linden. Because of the massive amount of data in the obituaries for the local children, obits were published at the end of this biography. Noted in the obit of Dirk Jan Gleysteen it mentions 11 children born to them. However, in two of the children’s obits and in the ancestry.com family report on Tryntje Mrs. Joseph Pierce it mentions that 12 children were born to Dirk and Klazina.

1. TRYNTJE GLEYSTEEN (INFANT) born 1854 Keokuk IA died 5 Sep 1856 Keokuk IA

2. TRYNTJE ‘CARRIE’ GLEYSTEEN born 7 Sep 1857 at Keokuk, Iowa and died 14 Dec 1908 Alton Iowa. Catherine (Tryntje) Glistin as spelled in the 1860 census was 3 yrs in 1860. Her father, Dirk 30 was a carpenter, Classisa (Klazina) was 24. and her brother, John was one. She married Joseph Peirce/Pierce 1848-1914. Their children were Lydia Prudence Pierce 1878-1933, Richard Dirk Pierce 1879-1914 and Elizabeth ‘Bessie’ Pierce 1880-1882. In lieu of an obit for Tryntje, see the obit of her husband Joseph Pierce toward the end of this biography.

3. JAN ‘JOHN’ GLEYSTEEN born 28 Dec 1858 at Keokuk, Lee, Iowa died 17 Jan 1917 Alton, Iowa.
He married Helena Maria ‘Lena’ Korteweg 1857-1932. Children Dirk Jacob Gleysteen 1881-1946 Jacob Christian ‘Jake’ Gleysteen 1883-1943, Jacob married Henrietta Hospers. Infant Sya Anna 1890-1890 and Sya Anna Helen Gleysteen 1893-1943. See the obituary of John Gleysteen 1855-1856 toward the end of this biography.

4. CORNELIA ‘KATE’ GLEYSTEEN born 5 Oct 1860 Koekuk, Lee, Iowa and died 30 Mar 1948 Alton, Sioux, Iowa She married John Meyer They had two children Arnold Meyer 1878-1908 and Cynthia Mrs. Dr. Franklin Lewis 1880-1971 of Webster Groves MO. See her obituary toward the end of this biography.

5. GYSBERTUS ‘GYS’ Gleysteen born 15 Nov 1862 Pella, Marion, Iowa and died Jan 1933 Alton, IA. He married Cora Van Boven 1861-1036 , They adopted two children, Arthur Gleysteen and Mabel Gleysteen . See his obituary toward the end of this biography.

6. NAATJE ‘NANCY’ GLEYSTEEN born 27 Sep 1863 Pella, Marion, Iowa and died 27 Apr 1918 LosAngeles CA. She married on 9 Nov 1882 in Sioux County IA to Abraham Skillman born 1856 NY died 1922, Child listed as Johanna M. Skillman born 1884 Nassau, Sioux County, in the 1885 IA census. In the 1900 census of Los Angeles CA, Abraham Skillman was 44, born Oct 1855 NY Wife was Nettie J. He was a paper hanger. Children listed were: Anna M. (Johanna) age 16, born 1883 Guy R. age 15 (1885-1933), Cynthia Ethel Viola age 12 (1887-1953) , Gladys Helena age 8, (1891-1979 ).

7. SUZANNA ‘SUE’ GLEYSTEEN born 4 Oct 1866 Pella, Marion, Iowa died 24 Aug 1906 Guthrie, Logan, OK. ‘Find a Grave’ lists Suzanna Corkins born Pella IA, died 18 Aug 1908 at Guthrie OK, her husband was Archie J. Corkins born 3 May 1864 died 19 Dec 1926 Oklahoma City OK. Married 1887. One son listed as Lionel Asher Staurt Corkins 1888 Alton IA -1926 France . He may have been their only child.

8. KLAZINA ‘CYNTHIA’ GLEYSTEEN born 7 Nov 1868 Pella, Marion, Iowa and died 9 Nov 1947 Northampton, Mass. She married Adrian Peter Zwemer 1861-1895. See her obituary toward the end of this biography. Richard A. Zwemer 1894-1929 is believed to be their only child.

9. DR. DIRK VANDERLINDEN GLEYSTEEN born 31 Dec 1870 Pella, Marion, Iowa and died 3 Sep 1951 Los Angles CA He married Frances Steffens 1871-1954. Two children were listed Graham Gleysteen 1898-1971 and Agnes Isbelle Jean Gleysteen 1903-1999. See his obituary toward the end of this biography.

10. JOHANNA ‘JOSIE” GLEYSTEEN born 14 Jul 1872 Alton Iowa and died 1949/1951 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Husband was Charles Marcus. Bozworth born 29 Feb 1872 OH married May 1897 Alton IA. He died 1952. They had children Harold William Bozworth 1899-1992, Robert Louis Bosworth 1900-1992, Mildred E Bozworth 1905-1992 and Mary Louise Bosworth 1907..

11. NICHOLAS ‘KLAAS’ ‘Charles’ GLEYSTEEN born 26 Aug 1874 Alton Iowa and died 19 May 1947 Rosalie Thurston NE. married 4 May 1912 Pierce NE. His wife was Alzina ‘Allie’ Ruslow born 30 Oct 1887 Wells New York died Sep 1965 Rosalie NE. 4 children, two were identified Charles William Gleysteen Jr. 1913-2000 and Virginia Gleysteen 1915.

12. WILLEM HENDRIK GLEYSTEEN born 17 Jul 1876 Alton Iowa and died 17 Jan 1948 Jenkintown, Montgomery, PA. 1st wife Alice Carter 1880-1917 2nd wife - Theodora Culver and he had four sons and four daughters. Alice 1910, Theodore 1911-1983, Margaret 1914-1984, Anne 1921, Klazina 1923-1956, Culver 1924-2002, and William H. 1926-2002. He was a Missionary in China. See his extended biographical obituary at the end of this biography.

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OBITUARIES of Dirk and Klazina Gleysteen and those of their children taken from local archives.

OBITUARY of Dirk Gleysteen 1828- 1904 In large part, a biography of his life.
Source: Alton Democrat, November 12, 1904.
Dirk Gleysteen died at his home in Alton Wednesday afternoon [November 9] aged close to seventy-seven years. He had long been a great sufferer from chronic bronchitis and this fall it became more severe than usual. Six weeks ago he took to his bed and since then only his naturally rugged constitution and iron will kept him alive. His realized that it was his last illness but faced it with a strong Christian faith and that cheerfulness of disposition for which he was noted through life. A truer Christian never lived but there was nothing long faced about his religion. He had a strong vein of humor and almost his last words to his children were tinged with pleasantry.
Dirk Gleysteen was the youngest and last of his family. He was born in Hoorn North Holland on January twelfth 1828. In his boyhood and youth he worked at carpentry on the famous dutch windmills which are a feature of the landscape in the country of his nativity. At the age of about twenty-two he came to America and landed at New Orleans. He traveled all over the south and southwest and worked at many things in the lumber camps and on the river and at carpentry in the cities. He came up the Mississippi to St. Paul Minnesota over fifty years ago when this region was a savage wilderness. In the early fifties he located at Keokuk and operated a cooper shop. (a cooper shop is where wooden barrels and such are made from wooden staves). The callouses from this hard labor remained in his hands to his death.
While at Keokuk he visited Pella and there wooed and won Miss Klazina Vander Linden--the noble woman who today mourns his demise. They lived at Keokuk till 1860 and there two children--of the eleven who stood beside their father in his last hours--were born. They are Mrs. Joseph Pierce of Sioux City and John of Alton. From 1860 to 1872 the family lived at Pella where six children came to bless their union. They are Mrs. John Meyer and Guy of Alton, Mesdames Skillman of Los Angeles California and Corkins of Topeka Kansas, and Mrs. Zwemer and Dr. Gleysteen of Alton.
The family came to Alton over thirty-two years ago--in the spring of 1872 and homesteaded on a farm south of town and here were born Mrs. Bosworth of Oklahoma City and Charles and Will of Alton. The first years here were hard ones. The father left most of the farm work to the older children and himself worked at carpentry and bridge building for the Omaha (?) . Later he went into the lumber business and general merchandise. By earnest effort and good management a competency and more was amassed.
Dirk Gleysteen had for over thirty years been actively connected with the varied interests of this community. He had shunned political office but held several minor ones and was school treasurer at his death. He helped to found the Reformed church here and was one of its staunchest pillars--an elder or deacon through all the years. Dirk Gleysteen was one of nature's noblemen and he died like a patriarch full of years and honors midst a family that has few equals. It was the first death to visit the family of thirteen--the youngest of whom is a man twenty-five. Well might Father Gleysteen pass from earth with a smile on his lips for the world is vastly better for his having lived. His sons are strong able prosperous business men and his daughters model wives and mothers. He had seen them grow up around him and had helped them to the advantages of education and religion and refinement. He saw his youngest son only awaiting the end to start for the mission field. His life work was done and peacefully and tranquilly he passed to his reward. The funeral was held this Friday afternoon. The stores were closed and a large concourse of people attended.

OBITUARY of Klazina Mrs. Dirk Jan Gleysteen 1836-1915
A PIONEER GONE Source: Alton Democrat, October 30, 1915. Mrs. Dirk Gleysteen died at her home in Alton Oct. 23, aged 79 years. Born in Holland, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. G. B. Vander Linden, she came to the United States when only sixteen years old and was married to Dirk Gleysteen in Pella in 1855 and lived there, except for a short period in Keokuk, up to the time of their removal to Sioux County on March 14, 1872. The pioneers, for such they were in every sense, soon became known to all of the early settlers, their home in Alton being open to all at all times. Mrs. Gleysteen was a devoted member of the Reformed church and gave close attention to her home and children.
The funeral was held from the Reformed church in Alton Oct. 26, the sermon being given by Rev. De Jong, her long-time pastor. Nine children survive the mother, John Gleysteen, Mrs. John Meyer, Guy Gleysteen and Mrs. Cynthia Zwemer of Alton, Mrs. Nancy Skillman of Los Angeles, Dr. D. V. Gleysteen of Lamberton, Minn., Mrs. Josie Bosworth of Oklahoma City, Charles Gleysteen of Crofton, Nebr., W. H. Gleysteen of Peking, China. Three sisters are yet living: Mrs. Schoep of Sioux Center, Mrs. De Booy of Pella and Mrs. G. E. Vander Linden of Staunton, Nebr.
Note: Her husband's obituary (Alton Democrat, Nov. 12, 1904) gives her name as Klazina Vander Linden. The Sioux County Cemetery Index shows her as born 10 Feb 1836 and died 23 Oct 1915.

OBITUARY of Tyntje Gleysteen Mrs. Joseph Pierce, daughter of Dirk and Klazina Gleysteen.
Alton Democrat of Dec 19, 1908 Mrs. Joseph Pierce died at the home of her mother in Alton Monday December fourteenth of uremia resulting from secondary carcinoma. Deceased had been ill for the past two years and within that period had suffered a severe surgical operation for a cancerous condition of the kidneys and kidney organs.
Carrie Gleysteen was born at Keokuk Iowa in 1856 and was the second child of Mr. and Mrs. Dirk Gleysteen, their first having died when the subject of this obituary was but a few days old. Deceased came to Sioux county with her parents in 1871 and located with them in Alton vicinity. She was married to Joseph Pierce on the twenty seventh day of December 1877 in the town of Alton which was then known as East Orange. For a number of years Mr. and Mrs. Pierce operated a boarding house in Alton, one of the earliest here, and both are well known to the old timers of this community.
Three children were born to them the last of which died at the age of two years. The surviving children are Mrs. Albert Cropley and Dick both of Sioux City, The Pierces left Alton many years ago and located at Sioux City and for many years Mrs. Pierce followed the occupation of trained nurse.
Funeral services were conducted Wednesday at two o'clock in English by Rev. Van Duine of the Reformed church and interment was made in the Floyd cemetery west of town where the infant child of deceased was laid to rest many years ago.
Special music was rendered by request by a quartet composed of Mrs. Wolf and Miss Gibbs and Messrs Waldron and Aue. Besides the husband and children deceased leaves an aged mother who set great store by her as her eldest child. She also leaves to mourn her loss brothers and sisters, John and Mrs. Meyer of Alton, Guy of Livermore, Mrs. Skillman of California, Mrs. Zwemer and Dr. Dirk Gleysteen of Alton, Mrs. Bosworth of Oklahoma, Charles of South Dakota, and Will in the China mission field. Her sister Mrs. Corkins died in Oklahoma but a few months ago.
The sympathy of the Alton community goes out to the Gleysteen family and to the aged mother in particular. Five times within a period of four years and four of these within a period of one year, she has been called upon to mourn at the bier of loved ones. Her husband died four years ago December ninth. During the past year her brother Nic Vander Linden has passed away, also her daughters Mrs. Corkins and Mrs. Pierce and her beloved grandson Arnold Meyer. FAMILY NOTE: Reliable family source confirms that this lady was born in 1856 (not 1866).

OBITUARY of John Gleysteen 1858-1917 son of Dirk and Klazina Gleysteen
[The obituary below was taken from the Alton Democrat as presented in the online Digital Archives of Sioux County. The image quality is poor, and some words or entire lines are illegible, as noted in brackets in the obit. Some names were confirmed in other family obituaries or from the transcriber's personal knowledge of names of Gleysteen's associates. The issue was indexed in the DASC as January 13, but the first page masthead is dated January 20. The Sioux County Obituary Index gives Gleysteen's life dates as 28 Dec. 1858-12 Jan. 1917.] SUDDEN DEATH, JOHN GLEYSTEEN John Gleysteen, pioneer and long one of the leading figures of Sioux county, died at his Alton home Friday evening about dusk while sitting peacefully in his chair. Death came without the slightest premonition to the rugged man and caused a shock to the entire community. For John Gleysteen was a notable figure anywhere. He had lived here since the pioneer days of his father's family and become a part of Sioux county, with friends everywhere. Tall, alert, courtly and manly, that probably describes this vigorous and kindly friend whose comings and goings we shall so many of us miss. Yet his taking away doubtless conformed to what might have been his own wishes if one ever could contemplate such an event. He never craved the noise of the crowd, although his genial nature shone even amid the noise and bustle of the noisy world. So we may drop a tear for a good man gone and yet try to think that he went as he would have liked. There is a creature of the woods which approaches as death did to John Gleysteen. It is rarely seen and its soft footfalls give no warning. Honestly was it said that in the midst of life we are yet in death. For few among us all had the promise of longer years than this rugged man. He was always active, had no business [illegible] and greatly enjoyed those little occupations which call for strength and ambition.
In the larger affairs of life Mr. Gleysteen was a wise counselor. He had been for many years [5 illegible lines] D. Gleysteen & Co., which bought and sold everything from a needle to a threshing rig.
John Gleysteen was born in Keokuk, Ia., 58 years ago December 28 last. On March 15, 1872 the family arrived in Alton and shortly thereafter the father, D.[Dirk] Gleysteen, the son John and John Meyer began business as D. Gleysteen & Co. Later he and Mr. Meyer were associated in business, but of late years Mr. Gleysteen had found plenty of occupation in looking after his farms and caring for his fine home in Alton. He owned a share in a cottage at Okoboji and always spent several weeks there during each summer, being an ardent fisherman. He was also a director in the Alton Savings Bank and a member of the Presbyterian church.
He was married 37 years ago the coming May 6 at Orange City to Miss Helena Korteweg and three children survived the union. They are Dr. D. J. Gleysteen of Alton, J. C. Gleysteen, an attorney of Cle Elum, Wash., and Miss Sya Helena Gleysteen at home. Mrs. Gleysteen has been in frail health for some time. The children were all present at the funeral. There were four brothers, Guy of Alton, Dr. D. V. Gleysteen, of Lamberton, Minn., Charles Gleysteen of Randolph, Neb., Wm. Gleysteen, of Pekin, China and four sisters, Mrs. John Meyer of Alton, Mrs. A. Skillman, of Los Angeles, Mrs. A. P. Zwemer of Grandview, Tenn., and Mrs. Chas. Bosworth, of Oklahoma City. The brothers were here for the funeral except William, who is in Pekin, Mrs. Meyer being the only sister present.
The funeral services at the Reformed church here on Tuesday afternoon were in charge of an old neighbor, Jacob Cambier and were attended by a large crowd. All of the stores closed from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Rev. Falconer[?] preached the sermon from John 17-24 and Rev. De Jong spoke briefly at the close of his old Holland friends. Pallbearers were M. D. Gibbs, Bert Scholten, Wm. Kooreman, Wm. Geurink, F. D.[?] Lohr of Orange City, and George Hoeven. Mrs. G. J. Slob, of Orange City, sang "Abide With Me and Face to Face" during the services. Interment was in Nassau cemetery.

OBITUARY of Cornelia Gleysteen Mrs. John Meyer 1860-1948 dau of Dirk Jan and Klazina Gleysteen.Source: Alton Democrat (4-8-1948) Born: October 5, 1860 Died: March 30, 1948 RITES HELD THURSDAY FOR MRS. JOHN MEYER--PIONEER RESIDENT Funeral services were held at the Presbyterian Church in Alton Thursday afternoon for Mrs. John Meyer, who passed on at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Franklin Lewis, in Webster Groves, Mo., March 30. Reverend Henry Eggink was in charge of the services and at the close Dr. Franklin Lewis spoke a few words of appreciation to those who assisted with the service and the friends present. Mrs. Ralph Van Zyl was organist and a mixed quartet Mesdames Fred Eason and Richard Cambier, Messrs. M. C. Muilenburg and Ralph Van Zyl sang two favorite hymns, “Lead Kindly Light” and “Abide With Me.”
Dr. Lewis was in charge of the commitment service in Nassau Township Cemetery. Pallbearers were, R. L. Poppen, M. C. Muilenburg, E. S. Kiernan, Oscar Eason, E. J. Kooreman, and Ralph Van Zyl. Brief services were held previously held Monday afternoon at Dr. Lewis Church in St. Louis, and immediately after Dr. and Mrs. Lewis left with their mother’s body for Alton.
Cornelia Gleysteen Meyer was born October 5, 1860 in Keokuk, Iowa. Her parents, Dirk and Klazina Gleysteen, who had come to Keokuk from the Netherlands, had twelve children, of whom Cornelia (always called Kate) was the fourth. Her family moved to Pella, Iowa for a few years and then her father decided to pioneer to the new colony in northwestern Iowa.
It was here as a young woman, she was married to John Meyer who had come to Alton from Holland, Michigan to teach the village school. Two children were born to the marriage, Arnold and Cynthia. Arnold preceded his mother by many years, dying as a young man after finishing work for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Columbia University, New York City.
For many years Mrs. Meyer was a member of the First Reformed Church in Alton, later transferring her membership to the Presbyterian Church, where her husband joined her. Her interest through the years has been mainly in her home and family. She excelled in the home arts and brought traditions of hospitality and kindness for which the home of her parents was noted. Her gentleness won the love and respect of many friends.
Since the death of her husband in 1938 Mrs. Meyer made her home with her daughter and son-in-law, Dr. and Mrs. Franklin F. Lewis of Webster Groves. There she shared in the homes and interests of her three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. She was about the home helping in her usual manner Friday, but the next morning was stricken while in her room. She was taken to one of the finest hospitals in St. Louis where she passed on quietly a few days later.
Mrs. Meyer lived to be 87 ½ years old, older than her husband, or her mother and father, or any of her sisters and brothers. Her death is the third in the family within the past several months. A sister, Mrs. Cynthia Zwemer died in November and a younger brother, the distinguished missionary to China, the Reverend William H. Gleysteen, the first of this year. Of her large family only two remain, Mrs. Charles Bosworth of Oklahoma City and Dr. D. V. Gleysteen of Long Beach, California.
Dr. Lewis returned to St. Louis immediately after the service Thursday and Mrs. Lewis was an overnight guest at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Van Zyl. She called on old-time family friends the following day and spent Saturday in Sioux City with Mrs. J. C. Glysteen before returning to her home that night.

OBITUARY of Gysbertus ‘Guy’ Gleysteen 1862-1933 son of Dirk J. Gleysteen and Klazina Van Der Linden.
Guy Gleysteen Son of Pioneer Sioux Co. Family Guy Gleysteen, for long an Alton resident and pioneer of this community, passed on Saturday afternoon at the home of his sister, Mrs. John Meyer, where he and Mrs. Gleysteen were spending the holiday season. Although not in good health for some years, Mr. Gleysteen was seriously ill for only a week before his passing, which was caused by a heart difficulty with complications.
Gysbertus Gleysteen was born at Pella, Iowa, on the 15th of November, 1862. He was the second son and the fifth child of Mr. and Mrs. Dirk Gleysteen, who came as pioneers into Northwestern Iowa when this colony was founded. For a few years he lived on the farm and then came with his parents to Alton, or as it was then called, East Orange. He attended the village school in winter, but at a very early age he entered his father's business as a helper in the lumber yard and grain business. In this line of business he was engaged virtually all his life.
As a boy he was fond of music and was one of the first leaders of the North Star band, an organization of young farm boys. From the beginning and for many years thereafter he was a member of the Alton band and for a long time was its leader. In 1883 he was married to Clara Van Boven. From this union no children were born, but some years after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Gleysteen adopted a boy and girl, who are now grown up and have families of their own. Both the son, Arthur, and the daughter, Mrs. Wm. Ekelman, live at Yakima, Washington. After severing his connection with the Farmers Co-operative Company here Mr. Gleysteen and his wife went to Washington, where they lived for several years. They returned to Iowa in 1930 and since that time have lived at Sheldon.
Mr. Gleysteen was a faithful and ardent member of the Masonic lodge and held many offices in that order. His life span stretched from the earliest pioneer days to the present. In all the wonderful changes wrought in this country during that time he not only took great pride, but he was a large factor in helping to shape them, while his kindly interest and Christian example exerted a helpful influence on many lives.
He is survived by Mrs. Gleysteen; their two children; by three brothers, Dr. D. V. Gleysteen, Lamberton, Minnesota; Charles Gleysteen, Rosalie, Neb.; Rev. Wm. Gleysteen, Peiping, China; and by three sisters, Mrs. Jno. Meyer of Alton, Mrs. C. G. Zwemer, Cairo, Egypt, Mrs. Chas. Bosworth, Oklahoma City, Okla.
He was a member of the Presbyterian church from its organization and was elected elder April 8, 1917, continuing in that office until he moved to Washington, where he united with the Christian church. Funeral services on Tuesday afternoon at the Presbyterian church were in charge of the pastor, Rev. R. L. Jones, assisted by Rev. J. A. Vis of Sheldon and Rev. Bert Van Zyl of Holland, Neb. Interment took place in Nassau Township cemetery.
Dr. and Mrs. D. V. Gleysteen of Lamberton, Minn., were among the many friends and relatives here for the services. Among others were Mr. and Mrs. J. C. Gleysteen of Sioux City; R. Van Zyl, Mr. and Mrs. James Van Zyl, Mr. and Mrs. Hubert Van Rooyen, and Rev. Vis, of Sheldon; Rev. Bert Van Zyl and Mr. De Boer of Holland, Neb.; Mr. and Mrs. Henry De Haan, Mr. and Mrs. Van Oosterhout, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Gebink, Mr. and Mrs. Hospers, and numbers of others from Orange City.
Pallbearers were Messrs. E. J. Kooreman, Will Kooreman, C. B. Hoeven, H. W. Klein, M. D. Gibbs, S. A. Lincoln. A quartet of ladies, Mrs. Richard Cambier, Mrs. C. B. Hoeven, Mrs. A. M. Sones, Miss Evelyn Smit, and Mrs. Jeannette Teeslink, organist, contributed music. Cars were furnished by S. A. Lincoln, Dr. D. J. Gleysteen, B. G. Hoxmeier, Mrs. S. R. Sipma, J. C. Henrich and C. J. De Munck. Source: Alton Democrat, January 13, 1933.

OBITUARY of Suzana ‘Cynthia’ Gleysteen Zwemer daughter of Dirk and Klazina Gleysteen. Mrs. Cynthia Zwemer, Early Resident At Alton, Passes On Mrs. Adrian P. Zwemer, nee Cynthia Gleysteen, died November 8 after a short illness at Northampton, Mass., where she resided for several years. Born at Alton, daughter of the pioneer couple, Mr. and Mrs. Dirk Gleysteen, Mrs. Zwemer had reached the age of 79 years. Her husband died in 1894, leaving her with a young son to rear. She remained in Alton until 1915 when she went to Kentucky and taught for two years in a mission school. In 1917 she joined her brother, the Rev. Wm. Gleysteen, in Peking, China and taught in Presbyterian mission schools and in the preparatory department of Yenching University for ten years.
In 1928 she went to Asyuth, Egypt where she taught English in the Mission College until 1937. Returning to the United States she lived at Ventor, N.J. and Pasadena, California and more recently at Northampton, Mass., where she stayed at Arnold Inn.
Her only son Richard Adrian Zwemer, remembered kindly by Alton classmates and friends, died in 1929. She is survived by a grandson, Howard Adrian Zwemer of Cambridge, Mass.; her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Richard A. Zwemer of Westfield, N.J.; two sisters, Mrs. John Meyer of Webster Groves, Mo., and Mrs. Charles Bosworth of Oklahoma; two brothers, Dr. D. V. Gleysteen of Long Beach, Calif., and Rev. Wm. H. Gleysteen of Jenkintown, Penn.
Funeral services will be held in Northampton, Mass., Nov. 11 and interment will be in Alton later, according to information received from Mrs. Richard Zwemer. Mrs. Zwemer was an active worker in the Congregational church here and teacher in the Sunday school, and was the first primary teacher in the Alton public school. A woman of refinement and culture, she was highly regarded by a host of friends here. Source: Alton Democrat, November 13, 1947.

OBITUARY of Dr. Dirk V. Gleysteen son of Drik J. Gleysteen and Klazina Van Der Linden
From the Alton Democrat of Sep 12, 1951 page one. Dr. Dirk V. GleySteen, 80, who grew up in Alton and practiced medicine here from 1901 to 1909, passed away on September 3rd in Long Beach, Calif., after a protracted illness. No single ailment was the cause of death; it was rather the general wasting of a tired body after a long and strenuous life . Dirk Vanderlinden Gleysteen was born in Pella , Iowa, on the New Year's Eve which ended in 1870. Though he celebrated December 31st as his birthday he was not sure in which of the two years he was born. His father, Dirk Gleysteen, had emigrated from Holland as a 16- year-old boy in 1844, and his mother, Klazina Vanderlinden, .had come from the same country with the religious group under Dr. Scholte which settled in Pella, Iowa, two years after Iowa gained statehood. Came to Alton in 1871. He was the ninth of his parents' twelve children, eleven of whom grew to have families of their own. In the summer of 1871, the family moved to Alton in Northwestern Iowa, a town which was just being settled in the wave of post-Civil war homesteading . Since there were no railroads within over a hundred miles, the family traveled in, canvas-covered wagons or "prairie schooners" to their new home . Here they settled on a farm near the new town. During the next five years they were quite discouraged by plagues of grasshoppers, but eventually these subsided and the family remained in Alton until the death of Dr. Gleysteen's parents.
He attended 8 Years Of College In 1883 the Northwestern Classical Academy, a school somewhat more than a high school but not quite a college, was organized in Orange City, Iowa, three miles away, and he attended this for four years, becoming; a member of the first graduation class in 1887. By this time the family fortunes had improved sufficiently to allow the younger children to have college educations, and Dirk was the first member of the family to have this opportunity. His first choice as a career was journalism, for which he retained a strong liking all his life, but since the nearest school teaching it was Rutgers, in New Jersey, he went instead to Hope college, in Holland, Mich., where he received a B.A. degree in 1891, which was followed by four years at the Medical School of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Mich., where he received his M.D., in 1895.
Married at Dubuque Dr. Gleysteen started practicing medicine at South Holland, IL., just south of Chicago . In 1896 he married Frances Steffens of Dubuque, Iowa, who had been a classmate at Hope college. Her father had been a minister and college professor in Holland, Mich. The Gleysteens' son, Graham, was born in South Holland in 1898. After short stays in South Holland, Dubuque, Iowa and Holdrege, Nebr., Dr . Gleysteen moved back to his home town of Alton, Iowa, where he practiced from 1901 to 1909. His daughter Agnes was born there in 1903.
Lived In Cuba In 1909, due principally to the bad health of his son, who could not stand the rigorous Iowa climate, the family moved to Cuba, where they remained until 1911, by which time his son's health was restored. Returning to the United States, the family settled in Lamberton, Minnesota. about 120 miles northeast of their old home in Alton, Dr. Gleysteen buying the medical practice and the home of Dr. L. Clement. Dr. Gleysteen remained in Lamberton, practicing medicine until the end of 1936.
Commissioned Captain During the first World War, He was commissioned a captain in the Medical Corps of the United States Army and served for some time in army camps in the southern states. In 1919 he was instrumental in organizing the American Legion on both a state and local basis and was the first commander of the Andrew Peterson post.
Delivered 3,600 Babies - The practice of medicine in country towns was a strenuous business throughout Dr. Gleysteen’s lifetime and not a job for a weakling. In his 41 years of practice he delivered 3,600 babies and it was is probably safe to say that in the trading area of Lamberton, fully half of children born during that quarter century from 1911-1936 had their first attentions from Dr. Gleysteen. He took calls at all times of the day and night, in all kinds of weather, and many a winter night spent hours in getting through storms and snowdrifts to his patients. On many occasions, with horse and wagon, he was lost when snowdrifts covered fences, roads, and landmarks. Dr. Gleysteen was never one to dodge an issue, even when silence would be more personally advantageous than outspokenness. Politically he was an independent, who could see merit in, and support, such apparently diverse policies as the conservatism of President Taft and the progressiveness of Senator LaFollette .
To Long Beach In 1936, due to a partial loss of hearing and an over strained heart, he reluctantly retired from medical practice and left Lamberton with Mrs. Gleysteen for Long Beach, Calif., where he lived until his death. Fortunately the bad heart condition was cured in the following year. Mrs. Gleysteen drove the two-way trip to Iowa from the coast, often alone, making their last automobile trip in 1949. In 1950 he made what he knew would be the last trip, but by train. He loved the prairies and the people who lived on them.
Dr. Gleysteen's was a long life that bridged the period from the prairie schooner to the stratoliner (first pressurized airliner) from fears of Jesse James and Indian uprisings to fears of Russian aggression, from buffalo herds on the unbroken plains to automobiles on concrete highways, from pioneer hardships to easy and comfortable living. His was a full life, a strenuous life, a useful life, and one of which he enjoyed every minute. When such a life ends, there is a feeling of sadness among those who are left behind, but even more a feeling of triumph as when John Bunyan 's pilgrims stand watching Great-Heart or Valiant-for-Truth cross, the river to the Celestial City. When such a life ends, those who are left can say, in the words of Saint Paul: "He has fought the good fight, he has finished the course, he has kept the faith.”

OBITUARY of William H. GLEYSTEEN son of Dirk J. Gleysteen and Klazina Van Der Linden Rev. Will Gleysteen Dies at Jenkintown After Heart Attack. William H. Gleysteen, 71, retired missionary to China and educator, died Saturday at his home in Jenkintown, Pa. following a heart attack, according to an Associated Press item in the Des Moines Register.
Dr. Gleysteen was born in Alton, youngest son of pioneer parents here, Mr. and Mrs. Dirk Gleysteen. He attended Grinnell College, the University of Michigan, and Union Theological seminary. As a young man he went to China to do educational work at Peking, and lived most of his adult life in that country, where he became a prominent educator. His children received their college education in the United States and Dr. and Mrs. Gleysteen also returned here preceding the late war, making their home at Jenkintown, near Philadelphia.
A sister, Mrs. John Meyer, lives at Webster Groves, Mo., and a brother, Dr. D. V. Gleysteen at Long Beach, Calif. Another sister, Mrs. Cynthia Zwemer, who had worked with him in China, passed on recently in Massachusetts and burial rites were held in Alton Thanksgiving week. The Rev. Gleysteen was held in high regard by many friends here who sincerely regret his passing. Source: Alton Democrat, January 22, 1948.
ALTON: Rev. William Gleysteen Dies Rev. William Gleysteen, 71, died in Jenkintown, Pa. after a heart attack. He was born in Alton, the youngest of the 11 children of Mr. and Mrs. Dirk Gleysteen, pioneer citizens of Alton and Sioux County. He was a graduate of Northwestern Academy, and then attended Grinnell College and the University of Michigan. Upon his graduation he taught in the Academy for several years, and then attended Union Seminary in New York.
In 1905 as a student volunteer he went to China. The following year Mr. Gleysteen was granted a three month furlough and then was married. His bride accompanied him back to China. They were the parents of four children. Mrs. Gleysteen died in China before the family was grown up, and after her death his sister, Mrs. Cynthia Zwemer, went to China to assist in the care of the children. Later Mr. Gleysteen was united in marriage to Miss Theodora Culver who went to China as a missionary in 1917. To this union four children were born. The children came to the United States for their education and most of them now have homes of their own in this country. The Gleysteen family [illegible] home five years ago on a [illegible] furlough, and since that time has been living in Jenkintown, Pa., where Mrs. Gleysteen's mother lives.
Surviving are the widow and [illegible] sons and daughter and two sisters, Mrs. John Meyer of Webster Grove, Mo., Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bosworth of Oklahoma City, and Dr. D. V. Gleysteen at Long Beach, Calif. Dr. Gleysteen was in charge of a boys' school in Peking, China. Source: Sioux County Capital, January 27, 1948.
REV. WM. H. GLEYSTEEN WAS DISTINGUISHED WORLD CITIZEN--RITES AT JENKINTOWN, PA From The Times Chronicle of Jenkintown, Pa., comes the following obituary of the late Rev. Wm. H. Gleysteen, distinguished native Altonite. It will be noted that funeral services were conducted by another prominent native son of a pioneer Alton family, Dr. John Muyskens of Jenkintown.
Reverend William Henry Gleysteen, Presbyterian minister, missionary, and educator in Peking, China, for 40 years, died at his home, 201 Greenwood avenue, on Saturday morning, January 17. He was 71 years old. Funeral services were conducted by Dr. John Muyskens at the Grace Presbyterian Church on Tuesday afternoon at 2 o'clock. Assisting in the services were Dr. Lloyd S. Ruland, China Secretary of the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions and Dr. John D. Hayes, a former colleague in Peking, now a minister at the National Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. Representing Mr. Gleysteen's many friends among the Chinese was Y. T. Lo, of Peking, China. Pallbearers were: Robert Carnwath, Jr., Lloyd H. Fallows, Arthur C. Argue, all of Jenkintown; Theodore C. Torrey, Hallowell, Pa.; Ambrose Miller, Glenside, Pa.; Liu Chan Au, Peking, China. Mrs. Robert J. Horne, Jenkintown, was at the organ. Interment was at the Hatboro Cemetery.
Mr. Gleysteen was born in Alton, Iowa, on July 17, 1876. His parents, Dirk and Klazina van der Linden Gleysteen, had migrated from the Netherlands and were pioneers in northwestern Iowa. The youngest of twelve children, he attended Northwestern Classical Academy, Orange City, Iowa, and Grinnell College before graduating from the University of Michigan in 1897.
In 1905 William Henry Gleysteen sailed for China as a missionary. For the next 40 years he was intimately connected with educational work in the Presbyterian Mission in Peking, mainly at Truth Hall, a high school for boys, but also in the task of organizing Christian education in North China. While in Peking, he was president of the American Association, and served as a director of Yenching University, the Peking American School, and the College of Chinese Studies. For a period he was a member of the International Famine Relief Commission. He was also active in many other religious, civic and educational enterprises. Mr. Gleysteen was a life-long friend of J. Leighton Stuart, formerly president of Yenching University and now United States Ambassador to China.
At the outbreak of World War II, Mr. Gleysteen was interned by the Japanese in Wei Hsien Camp in Shangtung, China. He and his family were repatriated on the Gripsholm in December, 1943. He had traveled extensively, had wide interests in varied fields, and had a great many friends all over the world.
Surviving are: his widow, Theodora Culver; four sons, Theodore Carter, of Furling, Bucks County; Culver, Vice-Counsul at Dairien, Manchuria; William Henry, Jr., and Dirk, both students at Yale University. Four daughters, Mrs. W. Scott Morton, of Edinburgh, Scotland; Margaret Gleysteen, of Washington, D.C.; Mrs. Elmer E. Kramer, of New York; Mrs. Robert W. Newell, of Nutley, N.J. A brother, Dr. Dirk V., of Long Beach, California and two sisters, Mrs. Charles Bosworth, of Oklahoma City, and Mrs. John W. Meyer, of Webster Groves, Missouri. Source: Alton Democrat, February 5, 1948.

Picture found on a public family tree on ancestry.com

Gleysteen Family Reunion, circa 1923
 

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