Gerardus Bernardus Denkers

Gerardus Bernardus Denkers

Last time I wrote about Bernardus Albertus Denkers.  His father is Gerardus.

Gerardus was born on July 21, 1843 in Deventer, Overijissel, The Netherlands.  He grew up there and married Aaltje Brand when he was about 25.  A few years later, he and his wife joined the LDS church -  early converts in the Netherlands.

Gerardus worked in the printing business.  His granddaughter, Norma, tells the story that after he was baptized, he went to work, where his boss asked him what religion he belonged to. He responded that he belonged to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  His boss asked if that was the Mormon Church.  When Gerardus said it was, his boss responded by saying that he did not care to have a Mormon in his employment and fired Gerardus.

From my research on the church's early days in the Netherlands, it appears that many Dutch did not like "the Mormons", so it is very possible that he could have gotten fired just because of his church membership!  Norma continues:
"Grandfather left the shop wondering how he would provide for his wife and children, but the Lord was with him. He picked up a paper from the street and in it was a request for an experienced foreman in a printing office in Almelo . . . He answered the request and was hired, and inside a week he had moved his family to Almelo."

This must have happened around 1875, because Pieter Jacob Denkers was born in Almelo on December 21, 1875, the first of the Denkers children to be born in that city.

This picture of the family was taken about 8 years after the family left Europe on the ship Wisconsin and came to Utah .  Like many of the LDS Dutch immigrants, they settled in Ogden.  Gerardus died there in December of 1911 and is buried in the Ogden City Cemetery.