Voorleser
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Voorleser was the title given to a responsible citizen in New Netherland and later Dutch colonies who had semi-official duties in local law, education and religion.
Etymology
[edit]The word voorleser as used in English texts is a variant of the Dutch word voorlezer, which means "one who reads (to others)". However, both spellings are used interchangeably when referring to the title used by colonial Dutch Americans.[1] It has several different translations or interpretations, such as "lay reader",[2] "public reader",[3] "fore-reader",[4] and "church reader".[5]
History
[edit]The title was commonly used from the mid-17th century[6][7] to the late 18th century.[8] In the villages of the era,[9] one person could accomplish many tasks. After the English took over the Dutch settlements of New Netherland,[10] Dutch settlers continued relying on the voorleser for maintaining village records and documentation. The last person given the title resigned in 1789; his successor was given the title of "clerk".[11] However, documents were maintained in Dutch until 1809.[8] The population grew beyond the ability of one person to maintain, and the majority of settlers began speaking and keeping records in English. Thus, the role of the voorleser disappeared, and the voorleser's tasks were redistributed.
Duties
[edit]The voorleser had numerous local duties and was considered an important member of the community[9] by the early settlers.[12] Each voorleser had jurisdiction over virtually all legal and religious actions and ceremonies in their community.[8] Voorlesers required scholarly qualities,[7] as they acted as the village clerk and schoolmaster,[9] typically educating the youth in the same building where religious services were held.[6]
As a de facto minister, occasionally reading the scriptures,[4] the voorleser was responsible for baptisms, communicants and marriages.[8] When a death occurred, voorlesers were given full charge of funerary tasks, serving as an undertaker, grave-digger, or sexton, and attending the burial.[9] The voorleser led the congregation in singing during church services,[9] and in the absence of a proper pastor, performed the ceremonies on Sabbath, which consisted of prayers and typically, a prepared sermon by a theologian from the Netherlands.[6] They also read the law and creed, as well as portions of the Psalms.[9]
Notable voorlesers
[edit]- Stuynhuysen, Engelbert – Old Bergen's first voorleser, gaining the title in 1662.[6]
- Bertholf, Guiliam – began working in Harlem, New York City on April 24, 1690.[7]
- Sickels, Abraham – Old Bergen's last voorleser, retired in 1789.[11]
Advisory boards
[edit]Other prominent members in the community of New Amsterdam (which included all the settlements around the Upper New York Bay) were part of councils that advised the Director of New Netherland. Called upon at various times during the colony's existence, they were known as the Twelve Men, the Eight Men and the Nine Men.
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ Education, United States Office of (1912). Statistics of Land-grant Colleges and Universities. U.S. Government Printing Office.
- ^ Lurie, Maxine N.; Mappen, Marc (2004). Encyclopedia of New Jersey. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-0-8135-3325-4.
- ^ "Original 1685 Bell." Archived 2011-07-27 at the Wayback Machine Friends of the Old Dutch Church & Burying Ground. Retrieved 2010-08-01.
- ^ a b Zalenski, Annita. "The Old Dutch Church of Totowa - Passaic County Historical Society". www.lambertcastle.org. Archived from the original on 2017-05-04. Retrieved 2025-05-29.
- ^ "Ellsworth-J-La-coste- - User Trees - Genealogy.com". www.genealogy.com. Retrieved 2025-05-29.
- ^ a b c d Winkle, Daniel Van (1902). Old Bergen: History and Reminiscences with Maps and Illustrations. J.W. Harrison.
- ^ a b c Riker, James (1881). Harlem (city of New York): Its Origin and Early Annals: Prefaced by Home Scenes in the Fatherlands; Or, Notices of Its Founders Before Emigration. Also, Sketches of Numerous Families, and the Recovered History of the Land-titles. author.
- ^ a b c d Taylor, Benjamin Cook (1857). "The Voorlesers, or Choiristers and Clerks". Annals of the Classis of Bergen, of the Reformed Dutch Church and of the Churches Under Its Care. New York: Board of Publication of the Reformed Dutch Church. pp. 167–169.
- ^ a b c d e f Van Winkle, Daniel (1910). "History of Bergen Village." The New York Times. Retrieved 2010-08-01.
- ^ Shorto, Russell (2005-04-12). The Island at the Center of the World. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-4000-9633-6.
- ^ a b {cite book|author=Holland Society of New York |year=1914|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Q7kTAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA37 |title=Yearbook of the Holland Society of New-York|access-date=2010-08-01}}
- ^ Clayton, W. Woodford (1882). History of Bergen and Passaic Counties, New Jersey: With Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men. Everts & Peck.