In the 1860's, two brothers by the names of Roelof Kastein and Willem Kastein emigrated to the United States. They were children of Gerardus Joannes (Gerrit Jan) KASTEIN and Berendina DUENCK (Doinck). Their sister Theodora had led the way.

Theodora Kastein

Theodora KASTEIN, born Süderwick 13 May 1821was married in Dinxperlo on 15 May  1847 to Garrit Jan WESTERVELD, born Gendringen 29 October 1813, son of Hendrik Willem WESTERVELD and Dina Joanna HESEN.

From this marriage:

1. Berendina WESTERVELD, born Winterswijk 13-11-1847.
2. Johanna WESTERVELD, born Winterswijk 31-10-1849.
3. Jan WESTERVELD, born Winterswijk 26-06-1852
   
4. Gerrit Willem WESTERVELD, born Winterswijk 30-05-1856

Roelof Kastein

Roelof KASTEIN, a weaver and farmer, was born on October 21 1811 in Süderwick and baptized six days later in Dinxperlo. He was married to Elisabeth te BEEST, born in Dinxperlo on April 9, 1809.

Together with their three children Gerhard (b. 30 May 1845), and the twins Theodora and Willemina (b. 8 February 1849), they left Dinxperlo from their farm Weverjanshuis on 16 July 1867. In the emigration list, it is indicated that Gerhard died exactly a week afterwards on 23 July 1867.

Roelof and Elisabeth ended up in Alto, WI in the United States. Elisabeth died there on 6 December 1879 and Roelof followed her to the grave on 20 January 1894. They're burried side by side on the Reformed Cemetery in Alto, Wisconsin in row 4.

Willem Kastein

Willem KASTEIN, a day laborer and farmer, was in Süderwick 12 October 1814 and baptized in Dinxperlo four days later. On 15 October 1836, he married Aleida Ramaker in Dinxperlo. She was born in Süderwick on 18 November 1813.

From this marriage:

1. Bernard KASTEIN, farmer, born Gendringen about 1837, died Dinxperlo 24 April 1867
2. Hendrika Willemina KASTEIN, born Dinxperlo 19 April 1839. Marr. WI, USA 1872 Gerrit van GALEN, born March 1836.
3. Gerrit Jan KASTEIN, born 11 September 1840.
4. Janna Geertruid KASTEIN, born 10 February 1842.
5. Johan Arnold KASTEIN, blacksmith, born 03-02-1843.
6. stillborn child, born Dinxperlo 16 May 1843
7. Wesselina Berendina KASTEIN, born 12-10-1844.
8. Hendrik Jan KASTEIN, born 22-08-1846.
9. Jan Willem KASTEIN, born Dinxperlo about 1850, died Dinxperlo 14 April 1852.
10. Willemina Aleida KASTEIN, born Dinxperlo 1852, died Dinxperlo 18 March 1854.

Two years after his elder brother, Willem and his family emigrate to the United States. They left the farm 'Weelink' in Dinxperlo on 2 July 1869..

Willem died in Alto on 25 July 1878, Aleida on 22 March 1880. Just like his brother they are burried at the Reformed Cemetery in Alto.

Last week, my friend Mary Risseeuw from Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin and I gave a presentation at the International Congress for genealogical and heraldic Sciences in Maastricht. The title was "We're all fresh and healthy. Emigration from the Netherlands to the United States in the 19th century. The slides are now available online.

I've just added a Dutch genealogy store to the site. In this store, visitors can buy books, DVDs and prints about Dutch genealogy, history and culture. I've selected publications that I think would benefit somebody researching his Dutch roots. The store is powered by Amazon. This website receives a commission for all sales, enabling this website to remain free.

Have you ever wondered why first names seem to run in Dutch families for generations? In the Netherlands, people used to name their children after family members. This way, first names can stay in the family for centuries.

The best known example of naming children is when a child is named after it's grandparent. But other forms of naming are possible too.

Census records can be a great source of information because they list all the inhabitants of a house, usually one or more families together with their domestic staff. Since 1850, the Dutch census records form a continuous registration where you can find who lived where at all times.

Drenthe is a province in the north of the Netherlands. It borders on the province of Groningen in the North, Germany in the east, Overijssel in the south and Friesland in the west.

The capital city of Drenthe is Assen. Other large towns are:

• Emmen
• Hoogeveen
• Meppel

Gerrit Hesselink and Willemina Mennink emigrated from their farm in Aalten to Wisconsin. They were relatively well-to-do and established a thriving farm that still exists today.

The first larger emigration wave from the Netherlands took place in the seventeenth century. A new colony was established in the Americas, which was called the New Netherlands. After a rough start, this colony attracted emigrants from all over Europe.