VanSteenbergen, Gerrit or Garrett, 1883-1931

STEENBERGEN, VANSTEENBERGEN, STEGEMAN, VANDERLINDEN

Posted By: Lydia Lucas - Volunteer (email)
Date: 6/13/2021 at 20:33:32

From the Boyden Reporter, April 16, 1931:

Garrett Steenbergen of Sioux City, who made his home in Sheldon for ten years prior to moving to Sioux City four years ago, died Saturday afternoon at one o’clock at his home, after an illness since the first of February, with cancer of the throat. While making his home at Sheldon, Mr. Steenbergen was employed in the Zager & Blessing store and later by the DeWitt Motor company. Mrs. Steenbergen is a sister of Mrs. O. C. Blessing of this city. At the time of his death he was manager of a Council Oak store in Sioux City.

Garrett Steenbergen was born in Orange City on February 22, 1883, and died April 11, 1931, at his home at 2712 Stone Park Blvd., Sioux City, Iowa, at the age of 48 years, 1 month and 18 days. He lived in Orange City for four years before moving to Boyden, where he lived twenty years and received his education. Later he lived in Sheldon for ten years before going to Sioux City four years ago. He was a member of the Presbyterian church.

Mr. Steenbergen was married to Elizabeth Stegeman on November 2, 1904, and to this union were born two daughters, Elizabeth Adelaide and Lillian Bernice.

He is survived by his widow, Mrs. Elizabeth Steenbergen; two daughters, Adelaide of Marion, Ia., and Bernice of Sioux City; his father, William Steenbergen of Lynden, Wash.; one brother, Dr. Jacob Steenbergen of Spokane, Wash., and three sisters, Mrs. Case Gorzeman of Santa Ana, Calif., Mrs. H. C. Lutjens of Sioux City, and Mrs. Carl Rathmann of Seattle. Mrs. Steenbergen will continue to make her home in Sioux City.

Funeral services were held from the West funeral home in Sioux City on Thursday, April 14th, at one o’clock, and burial was at Eastlawn cemetery in Sheldon at four o’clock. Pallbearers were D. Lawry of Sioux City, L. H. Lutjens and Ed Christiany of Sheldon, A. Green and Sandy Green of Boyden, and W. Fobes of Rock Valley.

Among the out-of-town relatives at the funeral were Mr. and Mrs. Stehrenberg of Rock Valley, Mr. and Mrs. H. Stegeman of Boyden and Miss Adelaide Steenbergen of Marion, Iowa.

* * * * * * * * * *

RESEARCH NOTES

News notes in other local newspapers about his death, or attendees at his funeral, call him Gerrit Steenbergen or Gt. Van Steenbergen.

His death certificate has Garrett Steenbergen and adds his occupation, groceryman; parents, Wm. Steenbergen, born in the Netherlands, and Elizabeth Vander Linden, born in Pella, Iowa; cause of death, cancer of thyroid, date of onset 2/15/31.

The Memorial Gardens (East Lawn) Cemetery index on the O’Brien County GenWeb site has Van Steenbergen, Gerritt, b. 1883, d. 1931. (It also has an entry for Elizabeth J. Van Steenbergen, ss Gerritt, 1883-1971.) But Iowa Cemetery Records on Ancestry.com, with entries taken from “Tombstone Records of O’Brien County, Iowa,” has him as Garrett Steenbergen. FindaGrave.com has a photo of his and Elizabeth’s joint headstone: Van Steenbergen, with his name spelled Gerritt.

His name is rendered inconsistently in other sources: Steenbergen, Garrett Van in the 1900 census; Garrett Van Steenbergen in the 1930 census; Gerrit Van Steenbergen in the 1910 and 1920 censuses; Garret Steenbergen in the 1915 Iowa state census; G. Van Steenbergen in the 1925 Iowa state census (indexed as M. Van Steenbergen); Gerrit Van Steenbergen (his signature) on his World War I draft registration card. (The draft registration card shows him as a clerk, Zager & Blessing, Sheldon; tall, slender, blue eyes, light hair.)