March 8 1862

My great-grandmother Maria Elisabeth Goessens was born in Brussels. She was the first child of Petrus Josephus Goessens (Nederhasselt 1836 - 1928) and Virginia Meganck (Nederhasselt 1834 - 1917). She died in Meerbeke on August 12 1934.

In 1883 she married Josephus Timmermans (Meerbeke 1858 - 1929) and according to what I heard from my parents, they had 11 children. I counted 13 in the archives, but there is some confusion about the first names, which I shall have to clear up, if that is still possible. How soon memory fades ...

There is some mystery surrounding Maria Elisabeth (I published her photo in an earlier post). She was born in Brussels, while her father and mother were born, married and died in Nederhasselt. She was the eldest of seven children, three of whom were born out of wedlock and legalised when their parents finally married in Nederhasselt in 1871.

I have been helped in this search by a person who, although totally unknown to me until a couple of years ago, is a nephew twice removed of Maria Elisabeth (his grandmother was her sister).

Maybe Petrus and Virginia had found work in Brussels, maybe they had eloped because Virginia's parents did not agree with their relationship (my contact remembers to have heard that the "bride's " family were relatively well to do). Maybe they fled to Brussels to avoid the scandal of the illegitimate birth, but then their two other illegitimate daughters were born in Nederhasselt. According to my distant relative, they finally married after both Virginia's parents had died.

How soon memory fades ... my father might have known the full story, although I consider that improbable - kids were not told that kind of stuff - they had to leave the room when a conversation went that way - his parents certainly did know it. But my grandfather passed away in 1953 when I was still a kid ; his spouse in 1973, long before I knew enough about the family to ask her anything about this situation. And she was not the kind of person who would have reacted favorably to that kind of question anyway ! And now, most probably, it will remain a mystery forever ...