Pearl's Family

 

The Stulting family originated in Holland and immigrated to the United States. The family was devout Christian and belonged to the Reformed Church in Utrecht. The family's religious beliefs and the political climate of the time were factors in their decision to leave Holland.

Here is a more detailed history of the family:

• Cornelis Johannis Stulting, born June 16, 1642 in Utrecht, was the family patriarch who brought them to America. He died in Hillsboro, West Virginia, October 12, 1922. He was considered a leader of worship services on the ship coming to America, and was the reason the family kept a large pulpit Bible published in 1660.
• Cornelis Johannis Stulting was married to Johanna, and they had four children:
  • Melvin Ann Doyle
  • Ena
  • Mary (Mamie)
  • Claude
  • Grace.
• Very soon after arriving in America, perhaps while living in New York, Cornelis Johannis and his son, Hermanus, built an organ. The Stulting men would tune the organ every Saturday so it would be ready for use on Sunday.
• Cornelis Johannis Stulting promised to convey 500 acres of land in Pocahontas County to John J. Schermerhorn.
• The Stultings first settled in a rough, wilderness area of West Virginia, near where they eventually established a home, known as the "Hillsboro home".
• Hermanus Stulting, son of Cornelis Johannis Stulting, was born October 5, 1816. He came to America with his wife Johanna. He was a carpenter. Hermanus collected bills for his father. Hermanus inherited the family Bible. He also kept a basket of watches well-hidden somewhere outside the house. One of the family's homes was near Droop Mountain. Hermanus Stulting married and had children. Hermanus lived to the age of eighty-nine, and died September 30, 1905 in Hillsboro.
• Hermanus and his family experienced frightening experiences during the Civil War.
  • Cornelius Stulting was a soldier in the Civil War. He was also a teacher.
  • During the war, family members would often hide in the chimney to avoid Northern soldiers, who were searching for them.
• Nicholas Stulting, son of Cornelis Johannis Stulting, was born June 8, 1821, and died March 17, 1893.
  • His wife Mary B. was born in 1820 and died in the late 1830’s.
  • They had three girls, Ocea, Mary, and one who died as a child.
  • Ocea married a Shrader.
  • They had a daughter, Lillie, who married a Dilly.
• Christopher Stulting, another son, went to Texas.
• John Stulting, another son, also went to Texas.
• There was also a married daughter who stayed in Holland.
• Arnold (Dorchie) Stulting, son of Hermanus and Johanna Stulting, was born September 20, 1845, and died December 27, 1937.
• He married Josiah Tucker, and they had no children.
• Katherine (Kate) Stulting, daughter of Hermanus and Johanna, was born July 8, 1849, and died near Ronceverte, West Virginia, March 12, 1918.
  • She married William P. Myers, and they had two children, May and Russell.
• Henrietta (Nettie) Stulting, daughter of Hermanus and Johanna, was born April 25, 1851, and died October 17, 1929.
  • She married Floyd Amos Doyle, and they had two children, Eugenia and Lura.
• Calvin Luther Stulting, son of Hermanus and Johanna, was born April 23, 1855, and died October 14, 1941.
  • He married Rebecca Jane Anderson, and they had four children, Anna Cliffor (Cliffie), Cooper, Guy, and Elaine.
• Caroline Maude Stulting, daughter of Hermanus and Johanna, was born March 9, 1857, and died October 21, 1921.
  • She married Absalon Sydenstricker, and they had seven children, Edgar, Maude Edith, Arthur, Pearl, Clyde, and Grace.
• Gradda Elizabeth Stulting, daughter of Hermanus and Johanna, was born July 16, 1860, and died May 7, 1936.
  • She married Newton Judson Doyle, and they had six children, Ernest, Lelia, Maude, Spurgeo Mabel, and Ruth.

The Stulting family's story is one of immigration, religious devotion, hard work, and adaptation to a new land. They maintained their cultural heritage while becoming part of the American experience.