Clark Family
Family Clark
De Clerck is said to be the surname of Edmond E.Clark. It may have been changed to Clark when Edmond immigrated to the U.S.A. There are many possibilities but no evidence. In one of the census they have the family as DeClark. Clerk sounds a like Clark in Flemish. We do know Edmond was Flemish and came from the West Flanders region of Belgium. At this time I have not found any evidence that he came through Ellis Island. There are several close matches in the records but with the help of the Flemish Genealogy Society in U.S. and Belgium they have all showed not to be him.
Edmond E. Clark Immigrated to The USA around 1907. He was around 25 years old. Edmond's father was Peter DeClerk his mother was Genevieve English or Engles in Flemish. Not much more is known about his life and family in Belgium. Family rumors say he was married and had two children in Belgium before he left . Edmond may have came in through Canada. He worked as a lumberjack on the U.S. Canada border. He also worked for a railroad company but they fired him when they found out he did not have his papers. On Sept 12, 1918 He registered for the draft in Saint Louis Missouri. Edmond Clark WWI Draft Through DNA testing we have been able to connect our Clark line to the Prendergast Family. All of that is under the DNA section. Edmond married Irma Maenhout in 1919 another immigrant from Belgium. Irma arrived here around 1906 . She was born in Meulebeke Belgium at the home of her Aunt Sidonia Lapeire and Uncle Henricus DeClerck. Sidonia and Henri immigrated to the US in 1920. They lived in Detroit and latter moved to Florida where they passed away. I do not believe Irma ever knew they were here. Irma and her brother Alfonse came here aboard the SS Finland six months after her Mother Marie (Lapeire) Maenhout and her sisters. Marie came here in January of 1907 Aboard the S.S. Kroonland. On the Passenger List Marie is with Maria age 9 who is know to us as Mary Maenhout And Tresa age 4 who is Elsie . Marie's Father was Charles Lapeire and her Mother Isabelle Rose Verhelle both from Meulebeke. Marie is listed as coming to Saint Louis Missouri to be with Husband Victor Maenhout who had immigrated here From Meulebeke in 1904 at the age of 30 aboard the S.S. Zeeland. On the Ship Passenger List Victor is listed as going to live with his cousin Camille Droogbe (or something close to that it is hard to make out) In Omaha Nebraska. I do not know why he came to live in St. Louis. Victor's Father was Ivo Maenhout from Zwevezele Belgium and his Mother was Barbra Baert from Pittem Belgium. Victor registered for the WWI Draft in 1918 at Saint Louis MO. There is a lot more on the family tree. I hope you enjoy it.
I would like to thank Lenny Devos. Lenny has a web site about her birth place of Meulebeke Belgium. Meulebeke is also the birth place of my Grandmother Irma Maenhout-Clark. I contacted Lenny through her web site and she was kind enough to go to the town hall and research our family. She also had an article ran in the local newspapers in the Meulebeke area asking for help in locating the Maenhout And Declerck families. A descendant of the Maenhout family named Roger Belaen saw the picture of Irma that was ran with the article and thought it looked like his Grandmother Leonie Maenhout who was Irma's cousin. So that is how we met Roger. Lenny also provided me with a CD
containing the entire population and parish records of Muelebeke from the years around 1500 to
1900 on it.
Meulebeke Belgium is where Irma Maenhout was born. It is located in West Flanders Belgium. We have a great deal of ancestors that lived in the Flanders area. Our cousin Roger Belaen still lives there and we were lucky enough to get in touch with him. He shared a photo of Victor Maenhout and several photos of The Maenhout family with us.
The Maenhout Family