SHEBOYGAN HISTORY

Hon. Peter Daane, Page 539

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HON. PETER DAANE, one of the honored pioneers of Holland Township, is a resident of the village of Oostburg, where he has long been prominently identified with business interests.  A native of Westkapel, Zeeland, Holland, he was born March 26, 1835, being one of nine children, of whom six are still living.  Adrian, who was born December 4, 1841, is a farmer of Fond du Lac County; Aplonia, born January 6, 1844, is the wife of Daniel Theune, a farmer of Ozaukee County; Elizabeth, born November 23, 1846, married Isaac DeSmidt, a farmer of Holland Township; William, born September 20, 1857, is a farmer in the town of Wilson; Pieternella, born August 3, 1855, became the wife of Adrian Lynse, a farmer of Holland Township.

    Mr. Daane, whose name heads this record is the oldest of the family.  In the spring of 1842 he accompanied his parents to the New World.  They sailed from Vlissengen to New York on a two-mast brig, called the "Fame," which made a remarkably quick trip, requiring only twenty-six days.  For some five years the family resided at Pultneyville, N. Y., where the father worked at common labor.  In the spring of 1847 the family continued their westward course to Milwaukee on the propeller "Indian Chief."  Coming on to Holland Township, the father purchased eighty acres of heavily timbered land from the Government, paying $1,25 per acre.  The country was new and unimproved; Indian trails were about the only roads in existence, and everything was waiting to be developed by the skill and intelligence of the white man.  Like many other pioneers, the parents of our subject built a cabin, cut away the trees, and thus established a home for themselves and their family.  The father of Peter Daane also bore the name of Peter.  His mother's maiden name was Pieternella Van Den Driest, and both were natives of Westkapel.  Having resided on their first purchase of land in Holland Township until 1875, the father bought a five-acre tract on section 7, where he spent the remainder of his days, his death occurring May 18, 1880.  His birth occurred November 8, 1814.  His estimable wife, who was born September 28, 1814, preceded her husband to the spirit world many years, having died February 5, 1869.

    Peter Daane, the subject of this biography, received his education in the schools of Pultneyville, and in the district schools of Holland Township.  When nineteen years of age, he began the battle of life on his own account, and how successfully he has fought it, will appear in the account that follows.  About that time he was married to Miss Susanna Eernisse, the ceremony being performed September 28, 1854.  Mrs. Daane is a daughter of Peter J. and Susanna (Cliquenoy) Eernisse, and was born in Kadzand, Zeeland, Holland, July 31, 1833, being the youngest of thirteen children, nine sons and four daughters, of whom eleven survive.  Mr. Eernisse was born July 12, 1791, and died November 12, 1879.  His wife was born January 6, 1789, and died August 30, 1880.  On the 13th of October, 1813, was celebrated their happy union, which was broken only by death, after a wedded life of sixty-six years.  Of their living children:  Isaac, born April 12, 1814, still resides in Holland; Adriana, born May 13, 1815, is the widow of Henry Orlebeke, and resides at Manson, Calhoun County, Iowa; Jantje, born July 29, 1816, married John Triller, of Dallas, Tex.; Sarah M., born October 8, 1819, wedded David H. Rhines, a farmer of Rock Valley, Sioux County, Iowa; Peter J., born January 24, 1823, is a farmer of Greenbush Township; Abraham, born February 17, 1825, is a fresco painter of Rochester, N. Y.; Jannis, born June 16, 1828, is a farmer of Douglas County, N. Y.; Samuel, born January 6, 1830, is an agriculturist of the town of Greenbush; and Matthew, born February 13, 1832, also carries on farming in Rock Valley, Iowa.  Four of these brothers served in Company F. Twenty-seventh Wisconsin Volunteers, during the late war, while Isaac served as a soldier in the Fatherland.  Of the Daane family three served the Union cause in the Rebellion--the father and his two sons, Adrian and Peter.  The father enlisted November 17, 1863, in the Thirteenth Wisconsin Battery, Heavy Artillery, under Capt. Richard R. Griffith, of Milwaukee, and served until honorably discharged, October 22, 1864.  The sons both enlisted in Company F, Twenty-seventh Wisconsin Regiment, August 21, 1862, and served their country valiantly until discharged, August 29, 1865.  Peter Daane was enlisted as a private, mustered in as a Sergeant, and the last year of his service held the position of First Lieutenant of the company to which he belonged, having been promoted July 26, 1864.

    After the war was over and his country no longer needed his service, Mr. Daane returned to the town of Holland, and engaged in more peaceful callings.  In April, 1867, he built the store located on Sauk Trail Road, and now occupied by A. J. Riemes.  For six years he carried on merchandising in that place with marked success.  In 1868 he was appointed Postmaster of Oostburg, which position he filled without interruption until 1893.  Mr. Daane erected the mill in Oostburg in 1879, and also purchased the elevator.  The mill has been fitted up with new machinery, and its capacity increased to fifty barrels per day.  The elevator, which was built in 1879, is a substantial one, 28 x 60 feet.  In 1878, Mr. Daane also purchased the lumber yard, which he still operates.

    A family of nine children has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Daane.  Susana, born September 22, 1855, became the wife of William De Munck, a farmer of Holland Township, the marriage ceremony being performed by the bride's father, December 8, 1875; Pieternella, born June 13, 1857, was married July 7, 1880, to Rev. G. Hundling, a Presbyterian minister of Breda, Iowa; Peter J., born March 1, 1860, married, May 14, 1884, Johanna Huibregtse, and is a merchant of Oostburg; Aplonia, born January 8, 1862, wedded John A. Zuurmond, a farmer of Wilson Township, on the 10th of June, 1884; Jacobus P., born November 24, 1864, wedded Maria Theune, April 28, 1887, and is by occupation a miller; Elizabeth, born June 26, 1869, became the wife of John Theune, a merchant of Oostburg, June 20, 1887; Matthew was born November 15, 1871; Adrianna was born February 2, 1873; and Adrian G., was born August 10, 1877.  The three last named are still under the parental roof.  The family are consistent members of the First Presbyterian Church of Oostburg.

    Mr. Daane is looked upon as a leader not only in business, but also in political circles.  His fellow citizens, appreciating his ability and integrity, have called upon him to fill a number of important official positions.  He was Town Assessor in 1855, Treasurer in 1860, Chairman of the Town Board of Supervisors in 1862, and again held the last named office from 1866 to 1874.  His has been Justice of the Peace from 1869 to the present, and in 1873 was elected to the Assembly.  Whether as Justice of the Peace, or a member of the Legislative body, Mr. Daane has discharged his duty in a faithful, efficient and able manner.  In politics, he is a stanch Republican, though official honors have come to him because of his fitness for the place, rather than as a reward for party service.