Slides from presentation at Maastricht genealogy conference

In September 2012, 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. … [Read more...]

Paper ‘from Winterswijk to Wisconsin’

In 2008, I wrote a paper called 'From Winterswijk to Wisconsin' for the Dutch in Wisconsin conference in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. I decided to put the paper online so more people will be able to read it. Download the paperRelated articles: Q&A about the presentationDutch in Wisconsin resources … [Read more...]

The Family of Dirk Gerkes Postma

This is the second in a series of 12 articles about emigrants from the Frisian municipality of Dantumadeel, who settled in Pella, Iowa. This article was written by Kor Postma and translated by Thys de Jong. … [Read more...]

Q&A about ‘From Winterswijk to Wisconsin’

I've just finished answering a series of questions by people attending the Dutch in Wisconsin conference. I gave a speech about the emigration from Winterswijk to Wisconsin in the nineteenth century. Here are the questions that I got and the answers I gave. I have expended some of the answers because I was able to do a little research. … [Read more...]

Dutch in Wisconsin resources

On occasion of the conference The Dutch-American Experience in Wisconsin: 1840-present which is taken place today I thought I write a post about some sources that are available for researching your Dutch immigrant ancestors in Wisconsin. www.flickr.com I've also uploaded some resources that are available to me to Flickr to make them available to a larger group of people. … [Read more...]

Dutch in Wisconsin conference

The Sheboygan County Historical Research Center will be hosting a conference titled, The Dutch-American Experience in Wisconsin: 1840-present, to be held September 25-27, 2008. Experts from the Netherlands and the U.S. will work side-by-side with local historical groups and historians to present a picture of the vibrant Dutch-American culture which thrives in Wisconsin. Yvette Hoitink, the creator of this website, will be one of the speakers during the conference. She will give a lecture about … [Read more...]

Debbink, Hendrik Jan and Berendina Dunnewold

Hendrik Jan Debbink and Berendina Dunnewold were a part of the second emigration wave to hit Winterswijk in the 1860s. They emigrated when he was already 69 years old, together with their family of four children. They joined Berendina Dunnewold's brother, Jan Willem Dunnewold, who was a minister in Sheboygan County, WI. … [Read more...]

Haartman, Evert and Janna Berendina Beskers

Evert Haartman was one of the pioneers who settled in Sheboygan County. He came to the country as a young man and later married a wife who had come straight from Holland. … [Read more...]

Dunnewold, Jan Willem

Jan Willem Dunnewold was one of the first ministers in Clymer, NY. He was an emigrant from Winterswijk who had never dreamt that his dream of becoming a preacher would one day come true. He later accepted a summons from Gibbsville in Wisconsin, another community with many Dutch settlers. … [Read more...]

Emigration in the nineteenth century

In the middle of the nineteenth century, conditions in Europe were poor. Crops were failling all over Europe and many people hardly made enough money to feed their families. For this reason, many people decided to emigrate to the United States, where farmland was plenty and people hoped they could begin a new life. In the Netherlands, some people also had religious reasons to emigrate. The had seceded from the Dutch Reformed Church and were being oppressed by the goverment. The United States … [Read more...]