Catharina Gast (1855-1860)

Catharina Gast was born on 6 Dec 1855 in Almelo, 162 years ago. There are many path between her and me: she was my second cousin 3x removed, and my 3rd cousin twice removed, and 4th cousin twice and 3x removed, and both my 5th and 8th cousin 3x removed. Such are the relations in a small town as Almelo.

She was the daughter of Gerrit Jan Gast (dutch link) and Martha ten Bruggencate (dutch link), the last of 8 children. Her mother died in 1860, and her father remarried, and had two more children. Of these 10, four would die as children, including Catharina in 1860, about six weeks before her mother.  Her eldest brother Jan Willem would die in the American Civil War. Three sisters would move away to become servants, and then married. The youngest brother married and followed in his father’s footsteps as a house painter. The youngest sister died unmarried in 1950.

It is not known, why the young children died. Dutch death certificates do not list a cause of death. Malnutrition does not seem likely, they were solid middle class. But accidents or disease were always possibilities.