The church at Wijckel
In November of 2009, Mel Van Vickle visited Wijckel, Friesland and learned some fascinating details regarding the old Reformed Dutch Church there. A lady of the village allowed Mel entry to the building and told him a great deal of history pertaining to this church. He also received a four-page pamphlet at the church which gives the history of the edifice.
The church was build in the 14th century and was shaped basically as we see today. They called in a cruciform design, except that it was originally constructed entirely of wood and with a shorter steeple. During the first half of the 17th century, the knave of the church was badly damaged by fire, although the steeple remained. The church continued to be used for some years, but gradually fell into disrepair. Then, largely through the contributions of Baron Menno van Coehoorn, the entire church was rebuilt in the stonework that with see today on the exterior -- a project that was completed in 1671. Atop the front of the church steeple, one can still see the date "1671" [see photo below] in the original ornate wrought iron, still firmly attached to the stones. This was a work of iron that was designed and put in place in 1671 by the town artisans that had worked to rebuild the church, to mark the completion of the rebuilding of the church after the fire that nearly destroyed it.
The wooden floor of the church hid the gravestones in the floor until 1991, when a renovation project which was begun after 1967 revealed their existence. [See photo below]
Among the gravestones in the church floor are those of Epeus Van Wyckel and Ydzardus Van Wyckel. [Someone at the Tresoar archives told Mel that "Jeppes" [as in Jentie Jeppes] could be a diminuitive form of the name Epeus.]
Mel also reviewed a list of preachers or pastors buried in the church ["predikanten"] and noted that "the eighth preacher of Wyckel" from 1649 to 1669 was Petrus Jacobi Croneburgh. He would most likely be the person who performed the baptisms of the four children of Jentie Jeppes and Tyedtske Gerrits who were baptized at the Church of Wijckel.
Source: Information and photos on this page, courtesy of Mel Van Vickle, via 14 Feb 2010 email and attachments.