Our ancestors. Their journeys. The Kirton Kids who carry the story forward.
Family history in progress · Updated October 2026
We are the Kirton Kids: descendants of families whose lives intersected with centuries of North American history. Our family research follows the Rapalje, Van Neste, Cossart/Cassat/Cosat, Fitzgerald, Chisholm, Garrett, Hardman, Pritchett and Kirton names. It honors the people behind the records without pretending every relationship or family story is already proven.
Krysta Kirton Niner and Corey J. Niner are parents of Tyler, Kyle and Jay. Their family continues the story begun by earlier generations.
The following parent-to-child chain was supplied and confirmed in family conversation. It still needs independent corroboration through civil, church, census or other original records.
These early European colonists arrived in New Netherland in 1624. Catalyntje was a Walloon settler, and her later depositions are important sources for colonial history. Their daughter Sarah Rapalje is often described as among the earliest children of European parentage born in the colony; that description should not be confused with their daughter Judith.
Historical reading: New Amsterdam History Center: Catalina Trico.
Genealogical compilations identify Judith as a daughter of Joris and Catalyntje and as the wife of Pieter Pieterszen Van Neste. Their marriage and the subsequent Van Neste generations should be checked against early church and land records.
Memorial 115092451. A proposed link between the Van Neste and Cossart families; the exact parent-child connection needs verification.
Memorial 152513557. Research candidate; relationship to the other Cosat memorials not yet independently verified.
Memorial 76541584. Research candidate; a possible intermediate generation requiring records.
Memorial 12164236. Identified by family testimony as the father of Mary Ann Fitzgerald.
Joris Rapalje and Catalyntje Trico are documented among the early arrivals to Dutch New Netherland. The colony developed on lands already inhabited by Indigenous nations. This is historical context for the proposed Rapalje family branch, not proof of the entire descent to Krysta.
English control changed the colony's government and name. Dutch-origin families continued living in the region amid changing political and legal systems.
The American Revolution transformed the colonies into an independent republic. The precise wartime activities and residences of the named Cosat ancestors remain to be researched.
Family tradition identifies Indigenous ancestry associated with Kentucky and Tennessee. Those regions connect with several distinct Indigenous nations, including Cherokee, Chickasaw and Shawnee histories. No particular tribal affiliation has yet been established for this maternal line by the records assembled here.
The westward Latter-day Saint migration began from Nauvoo in 1846, with pioneer companies reaching the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. The family identifies with this heritage, but the names and companies of specific migrating ancestors remain to be established.
On May 1, 1900, the Winter Quarters mine disaster killed approximately 200 miners. Family history identifies a John Kirton as a casualty and an ancestor; the precise genealogical link and identification should be checked against casualty lists and family records.
Marie Garrett was born in 1946. Her daughter Krysta was born in 1977. Their family carries forward memories of earlier generations while building its own history.
Vera E. Pritchett was Marie's older sister. Marie Garrett (born 1946) is living. Their maternal half-brother, Uncle Arland, was Florence Vera's son with Grandpa Hardman.
Krysta's father served in the U.S. Air Force and later worked as a truck driver. He died in December 2005. His service, care and presence remain part of the family's remembered legacy.
Krysta Kirton Niner and Corey J. Niner married in Flagstaff, Arizona, in June 2010. Their family connects the maternal Garrett history and paternal Kirton history.
Tyler, Kyle and Jay are the next generation. Their stories belong to them; this public page records their names without publishing private personal details.
Family-supplied sources: Find a Grave memorial IDs linked throughout this page and firsthand relationship confirmations from Krysta Kirton Niner.
Independent historical context: New Amsterdam History Center; additional genealogical compilations on Judith Rapalje and Pieter Van Neste should be compared with original church records.
Next verification priorities: the Van Neste–Cossart connection; Peter Cassat → Jacob Cosat → Peter Cosat; original records for Mary Ann and John Fitzgerald; the specific pioneer migration; the Scofield casualty identity; and the Indigenous ancestral branch.
Research principle: A memorial is a valuable lead, not automatic proof of an event or relationship. Keep family testimony, memorial assertions and independently documented history distinct.