In discussion groups, I will often see people wondering why they can't find their ancestors' records in WieWasWie (WhoWasWho). WieWasWie is the largest website with genealogical sources in the Netherlands, a collaboration between dozens of repositories throughout the country. It has over 100 million references to people in the database, but is far from complete. Each repository has its own schedule on how they enter information. They all started with the marriages and most continued with the … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Recent information is not online
17 December 2014 by 2 Comments
If you're trying to find information about people born in the last century, you won't find much online. Dutch privacy laws restrict access to records of people born less than hundred years ago. To access these records, you will need their consent or proof of death. Information doesn't come online the minute it's 100 years old either. Not all archives put their birth, marriage and death records online, and those that do do not always immediately scan or index the records. Some archives choose … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Register now for Dutch Ancestors webinar
10 December 2014 by Leave a Comment
Legacy Family Tree just announced their line-up for the webinars in 2015. One of the webinars will be by Dutch Genealogy's own Yvette Hoitink. On 16 September 2015, she will present a webinar about researching your Dutch ancestors. Researching your Dutch ancestors Do you have ancestors from the Netherlands? This webinar introduces you to the most important records and shows you what you can find online, even if you don't know any Dutch. Learn how naming traditions and emigration patterns can … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Open Archives website
3 December 2014 by 1 Comment
A growing number of archives in the Netherland provide access to their indexes and databases as open data. The Open Archives website provides a search engine that searches all these records sets. The Open Archives website is available in English, unlike the websites of some of these archives. Just type in a name and use the filters to find the record you are looking for. Available records As more archives provide their data as open data, more records will become available. Volunteers are also … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Pilgrim Archives website
26 November 2014 by 18 Comments
UPDATE 2020: The Pilgrim Archives website is no longer online. I've copied the information to the page Pilgrims in Leiden - Pilgrim records. With Thanksgiving coming up in the US, I thought it would be fun to turn your attention to the website Pilgrim Archives. During their stay in Leiden, the Pilgrims left traces in Leiden records. The archives in Leiden got so many questions about these records that they digitized them and made them available online. The “Pilgrims in Documents” … [Read more...]
Quick tip – List of Newspaper Archives
12 November 2014 by 2 Comments
Eric Hennekam has compiled a list of online archives of Dutch newspapers. The list and most of the website he refers to are in Dutch, and so are the newspapers themselves, but this will give you some idea of the range of information out there. The European Library is also working on a portal to provide central access to Europe's historical newspapers. A preview is available now. This website has an English interface, although the underlying newspapers will still be in Dutch. … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Dutch immigrants kept great records
5 November 2014 by Leave a Comment
The other day, my friend Mary and I were talking about Dutch immigrants to Wisconsin. She explained that in Wisconsin, registration of births, marriages and deaths wasn't mandated until 1907. Dutch immigrants had been used to civil registration since 1811. Unlike many of their new neighbors, they were used to having their vital events recorded and continued to do so after emigration. It is not uncommon to find a marriage record for a Dutch couple in Wisconsin in the 1850s or 1860s, fifty years … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Don’t trust the archivist! (at least: not blindly)
31 October 2014 by Leave a Comment
Earlier this year, I emailed an archivist in Germany to ask about the sources that might be available for my 18th century ancestor. The archive is 2.5 hours from where I live, so I didn't want to drive there for nothing. Unfortunately, the archivist informed me that the town hall had been bombed in World War II, destroying all the old records. For the village and period I was searching, no records were left. I was sorry to hear that as I am writing an article about these people and want to … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Understanding borders
24 October 2014 by 2 Comments
If your ancestors lived near a border, try to understand the influence it may have had on their lives. At different times, it may have been very easy or very difficult to cross the border. Your ancestors may have been involved in smuggling or border patrol. They may have been called as witnesses to determine where the border was. These activities could have left traces in records. The language spoken on both sides of the border was probably similar, since most people spoke dialect rather … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Dutch Genealogy article in magazine
14 October 2014 by Leave a Comment
The October/November 2014 issue of the Internet Genealogy magazine features an article about Dutch genealogy: "Find Your Dutch Ancestors Online." In the six-page article, Yvette Hoitink shares websites and tips to help you find your ancestors from the Netherlands. The magazine is available in newsstands in the United States and Canada and for subscribers. A PDF-version is available for purchase from the Internet Genealogy website (bottom of the page: November 2014, vol. 9 no. 4). … [Read more...]
