This portrait hung in my Grandma Grace Filipek’s room at my parents’ home in Wheaton, Illinois. With my interest in family history beginning in the 1975-76, my mom became more interested in her Vanderkloot roots. I believe after Dick Denkers’ July 1977 Vanderkloot Reunion, my mom, Jeanne, asked to borrow a few portraits from Dick Denker and Harry Schodrof. She also chose from her Grace Filipek’s collection. She then had the old portraits reproduced and professionally framed. After Grandma Grace Filipek passed in 1979, all the framed photos continued to be hung on the same wall until my mom’s passing in 2018. At which time I became the inheritor.

This particular portrait has been a mystery as it was presumed these were Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot’s children; it was not known which ones. Because of the skirt, it was initially thought that it was Grace’s sister, Alette. However, in July 2007, my mom and I visited Alette’s son, Harry Schodrof. He told us it was definitely not Alette, which meant the two were either Matthew, Art, or Adrian (Ade).

In August 2018, Betsy Strand e-mailed: “Just guessing, but since these two have blue eyes, and Matt, Art, and Alette had blue eyes, I pick Matt and Art”. Boys wore skirts when they were very little back then”. She also wrote “Matt, Art, and Alette had blue eyes. Ade, Grace, and Marie had brown eyes. Grace’s eyes were very dark, as were Margie’s. The children in this photo have blue eyes. I believe the older one is Matt.” I wrote to Betsy: “I also noted the very curly hair on the boy to the left. I also learned that sailor suits were popular on young boys around 1890.”

The “Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot Family Portrait (circa 1902)” portrait shows Matt as the only boy with curly hair. And if one observes carefully, Matt, Art, and Alette have lighter-colored eyes while Ade, Grace, and Marie have darker eyes in that photo. Thus, it appears the boys in the portrait are Matt and Art.

In October 2018, I cut the paper on the back of the frame to take the portrait out for a high-quality scan. To my amazement, I found it was not a 1970s reproduction but the original on cardboard stock. On the back was written: “Vanderkloot Boys”. Since there were only two boys in the photo and they both had light-colored eyes, it had to be Matthew and Art Vanderkloot. Matthew was born on 28 Sep 1883, and Art was born on 28 Aug 1885. Art (standing) appears to be about 2-3 years old, suggesting a year of 1887-1888. Given the warmer clothes, it is probably late 1887 or early 1888. Hay bale photos were also common in Chicago portraits in the late 1880s.

The photographer Wilcox at 75 Madison was noted at the bottom of the photo. A search of the Chicago Photographer’s listing confirmed: Wilcox Brothers, 75 Madison Street, corner of State Street in Chicago from 1884-1891. Thus, a photo in 1887 to 1888 is within the range of a Wilcox portrait at that address.

Given the heavy and warm clothing, it is unlikely these photos were taken around the time of Matt’s 4th birthday in September or Art’s 2nd birthday in August 1887. But a colder weather time of late 1887 might be around the time of their parents’ Adrianus and Martha’s 5th Wedding Anniversary on December 26, 1887. At that date, the family was only the two parents and the two boys, Matt and Art. And thus it is possible that since they were at the photographer’s, Adrianus and Martha might have had their 5th Anniversary portrait taken also. See the “Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot Portrait (circa late 1887)”.

This original portrait was likely within Grace Vanderkloot Filipek’s collection when his daughter Jeanne had it framed in the late 1970s. I scanned it in 2018. If you would like to add information about this photo, please contact Dave Jordan, a great-grandson of Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot. The Picture Reference Number is: JCJ02.