Stamvader Jan Smit"s Origin
In the Dutch East India Company"s muster roll of free burgers for 1692 he is listed as Jan Smit from Maastricht (Johannes Smit van Mastricht en Adriana Tol, 5k).

Jan Smit was a soldier. In 1681, when he married Adriana Tol, he was stationed at the garrison in Delft, in the company of Captain Moor, and it would seem that he had been there since at least November 1680 and probably a good deal earlier.

On the 19th November 1680, a child, Christoffel, was baptised in Delft at the Catholic church, Sint Hippolytus op het Bagijnhof. The parents are stated to be Johan Smits and Lucretia van Senne. In the Delft Ondertrouw boek, against the application of Jan Smit and Adriana Tol to marry, is a note that Lucretia, widow of Robert van Sante, had objected on the grounds that she already had a child by Jan Smit. The objection was presumably overruled since it is also recorded there that the objecttions was withdrawn on 22nd December 1681.

Stammoeder Adriana Tol"s Origin
Adriana Tol was baptised on 16th of July 1656 in the Nieuwe Kerk, Delft as Aryaentje, Vader Jacob Tol, Moeder Elisabet vandr. Piet. The witnesses were her grandfather, Dirck van der Piet and his second wife, Aryaentje Tijsz., and Elisabet Isaackx.

Her father, Jacob Alewijnsz Tol, was Clerk to the Secretary of Delft. When he married Lijsbet van der Piet at the Nieuwe Kerk, Delft on 3rd of March 1647, he was not a young man, probably already in his 40"s but a bachelor nevertheless, while his wife was around 20. When they married he was living in the house called "De Snouck" on the corner of Ouderlangendijk and Jacob Gerritsenstraet in Delft. His family had lived in this house since at least 1620, and his widow continued to live there after his death, so this seems to have been where Adriana was brought up.

When Jacob Alewijnsz Tol died in September 1662 his children became wards of the Delft Weeskamer. Although still looked after by their mother, they were appointed three guardians and their inheritance presumably invested and used to feed and clothe them until they came of age which Adriana would have done around 1681.

On 22nd December 1685, named as Adriana Jacobsz. Tol, she appeared before the Delft Weeskamer and stated that she was the wife of Johannes Smit, soldier. She declared that her mother had raised and provided for her properly; she thanked her for her good care and freed her of any further obligation.

Their Marriage
Their application to marry is recorded in the Delft Ondertrouw register, apparently akin to the Huwelikshof at the Cape, or the Banns book of the English church, on the 25th October 1681. An objection was raised to their marriage and the second reading of the banns was forbidden (see above). Eventually, on the 22nd December, the prohibition was lifted. Since this was, apparently, a Monday, one assumes that the second reading of the banns did not take place until the following Sunday, 28th December and for the third time, again presumably, the next Sunday, the 4th January 1682.

The last note in the Ondertrouw register reads "Attestatie gegeven op Schipluiden den 4 januarij 1681" [sic - presumably the usual mistake made at the start of a new year!] which a Dutch friend translates for me as "Given letter of transfer to Schipluiden the 4 january 1681". I have assumed, until I can establish for certain, that this "attestatie" or letter of transfer, was specifically to allow the couple to marry at Schipluiden (not far from Delft).

Unfortunately, so far as I have been able to establish, no Schipluiden marriage registers exist for this period. This means that we do not know when they were married - the 4th January 1682 (a Sunday) would have been the earl iest date possible, immediately after the third reading of the banns.

For a transcript of the notes in the Delft Ondertrouw register see my here.

Their arrival at the Cape
The earliest certain mention of Jan Smit at the Cape that I have so far found is in the Cape Town church registers when his son Christoffel was baptised on 9 May 1688, and for Adriana Tol the earliest date is 16 October 1689 when their son Jacobus was baptised at Stellenbosch.

Their Family
I am still researching their family but from what I have found so far they would seem to have had the following children:

1. Joannis Smit, baptised 10 January 1683, Nieuwe Kerk, Delft
He is probably the Jan Smit who married Eva Zaaijman in 1711
and who died circa July 1714, without leaving any children.

2. Christoffel Smit, baptised 9 May 1688, Cape Town
farmer of Sútrij or Lútrij, Stellenbosch
married Catrijn la Fêbre 9 February 1721, Stellenbosch

3. Jacobus Smit, baptised 16 October 1689, Stellenbosch
(baptism recorded in the Cape Town registers)
farmer of Uylekraal, Swartland, he died circa 1752.
married Elisabeth Slabbert, 3 March 1709, Cape Town

4. Hulsie Smit, baptised 1 April 1691, Cape Town
(this name is probably a phonetic rendering by the minister
of the name "Hilletje" under which name she appears in all
later records). She died circa January 1761.
married Matthias de Beer and later Jan Georg Zorn

5. Francois Smit, born Cape of Good Hope
farmer in the Vierentwintigrivieren area,
he died circa 1758.
married Maria van Staden, 19 November 1719, Drakenstein

6. Alewijn Smit, baptised 28 September 1695, Cape Town
farmer of Zo Voorbij, Vierentwintigrivieren.
He died circa 1774.
married Hester Bekker, 25th December 1718, Drakenstein
She died the 11th January 1778.

Death of Jan
Jan Smit died between the 1st and 6th October 1696, after a fight with Jacob Cloete, after which he complained of pain in his chest. On the 6th Ocober it was reported that Matthijs Greef had been to inspect the corpse. (1/STB 18/153, Notarial Declarations)

Adriana"s life after Jan Smit
In 1696 she is listed in the muster rolls as the widow of Jan Smit, in 1698 as "Adriana Talks, wed: Jan Smith 6 k[inderen]."

On 20th June 1700 she had a daughter, Johanna, baptised in the church at Stellenbosch. The baptismal entry reads:

Johanna dochter van (left blank)
de moeder Addrijana Tol
de getuijgen Joggum Sachs en Marta Lafeber
gedoop 20 Junij 1700

I do not know if this child would have used the surname of Smit (her brothers and sisters) or Tol, or a different one, or, indeed, if she survived infancy.

On the 29th June 1700, the Stellenbosch Church Meeting suspended Adriana from church services for a year. The reason is not stated other than that she is admonished to live a better life. Unfortunately none of the earlier Stellenbosch Church Meeting minutes, which might have contained a previous warning, appear to have survived. A year later, on the 28th March 1701, her suspension was continued.

Adriana married a second time at Stellenbosch on the 11 January 1705, to Andries Cuyper, a ship"s carpenter who came originally from Stettin. In June 1705 they were living in Stellenbosch in the area known as Jan de Jonkers Hoek. Andries Cuyper died before 1722 when Adriana is described as his widow.

Death of Adriana
Adriana Tol presumably died some time after 30 June 1722 on which date she is mentioned as "the widow of Andries Cuyper" in the will of her son, Francois Smit.

SOURCES:
Bydraes tot die Genealogie van ou Afrikaanse Families,
deur Dr. J. Hoge. Amsterdam, A.A.Balkema, 1958.
Church Register, Cape Town
Church Register, Delft, Nieuwe Kerk
Church Register, Drakenstein
Church Register, Stellenbosch
Delft, Gemeentearchief - Weeskamer Comparitieregisters
Delft, Gemeentearchief - Ondertrouw and Trouw registers
Geslagsregister van ou Kaapse Families (A.A. Balkema, Cape Town, 1966)
Precis of the Archives of the Cape of Good Hope -
Requesten (Memorials) 1715 - 1806, page 1028
Cape Archives:
Council of Justice, Sententien, 6.6.1705, CJ 782 fol. 4
Estate Accounts - Smit, Hilletje wed Jan Georg Zorn, 1761-1763
(MOOC 13/1/6,3)
Muster Rolls of Free Burgers (VC39, vol.1, p. 123 and p. 161, p. 179)
Notarial Declarations (1/STB 18/153)
Will of Francois Smit and Maria van Staden, 1722 (MOOC 7/1/10,53)
Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk Argief
Stellenbosch Church, Kerkvergadering notule

Thanks to research by:
Richard Ball
who would have been unable to do this research without the help of André Kellerman, Helena Liebenberg, Graham Lloyd, Bob Kernkamp and many discussions with Alwyn Petrus Smit.

Thanks to submissions by:
Mark Barker
A van Rensburg

The Smit family appear on two web sites:
One maintained by Richard Ball
and one maintained by Ron Smit