New Additions To My Library

A large library gives a genealogist or historian strategic depth. It is where we can retreat to increase our understanding and sharpen our arguments.

I have been doing genealogy since 1991 and have collected a large library, spread across the four floors of our house. Some items are directly related to genealogy, such as genealogical journals and publications, or research guides. I also have many books about history, including local history of places in the Netherlands and Dutch colonies or settlements.

I thought I would share some of my latest additions to my library with you. You can tell I have been doing a lot of New Netherland research lately. I also used a gift certificate I won for the RQG Student Prize to treat myself to some books about Eleanor of Aquitaine.

New Netherland/New York

Shorto, Russell. Taking Mahnattan: The Extraordinary Events that Created New York and Shaped America. Swift Press, 2025.

Venema, Janny, ed. Correspondence, 1659-1660. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2022.
This is a source edition of the correspondence of the New Netherland council.

Meyerink, Kory L. New York in 1698: A Comprehensive List of Residents, Based on Census, Tax, and Other Lists. Baltimore, Maryland: Genealogical Publishing, 2024.

Hodges, Graham Russell. Root & Branch: African Americans in New York & East Jersey. University of North Carolina Press, 1999.

Merwick, Donna. The Shame and the Sorrow: Dutch-Amerindian Encounters in New Netherland. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2006.

Buchelius, Arnoldus. Notae Quotidianae van Aernout van Buchell. J.W.C. van Campen, ed. 1940. Werken Uitgegeven door het Historisch Genootschap 70. Utrecht,  Netherlands: Kemink en zoon, 1940.
This is a transcription of a 17th-century manuscript at the library of the University of Utrecht.  Arnoldus Buchelius was a director of the West India Company. These notes (in Dutch and Latin) include events in New Netherland.

Medieval Genealogy

De Maesschalck, Edward. De Hertogen van Brabant 640-1430. Gorredijk Sterk & De Vreese, 2024.
This book discusses the Dukes of Brabant between 640 and 1430. I have previously proven my descent from John II and John I, dukes of Brabant. They and several of their ancestors are featured in this book.

Turner, Ralph V. Eleanor of Aquitaine: Queen of France, Queen of England. Yale University Press, 2011.
I bought this book and the next one to help me prove my last generation of my descent from Eleanor of Aquitaine.

Lewis, Matthew. Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine: Founding an Empire. Amerley Publishing, 2023.

Vanderputte, Steven, ed. Judith of West Francia, Carolingian Princess and First Countess of Flanders. Brepols, 2024.
I went to the accompanying exhibit in Ghent. Judith was the great-granddaughter of Charlemagne and became the first countess of Flanders in the 10th century. I probably descend from Judith via Margaret, Countess of Flanders. Both the exhibition and the book are fascinating.

History

Buisman, Jan. Duizend Jaar Weer, Wind en Water in de Lage Landen. Vol. 8. 1825-1850. Van Wijnen, 2025.
This is the eighth volume in a series spanning a thousand years of weather, wind, and water in the low countries. It contains chronologically arranged short stories about various metereological events and disasters in the Netherlands. I have often found this useful for background information about local events. Events included in the book include epidemics, floods, fires, crop failures, etc.

Boerderij- en Veldnamen in Dinxperlo. Oudheidkundige Vereniging Aalten Dinxperlo Wisch, 2024.
This is a book about farm and field names in Dinxperlo, where some of my paternal ancestors came from. In this area, people named themselves after the farms they lived on until the 1800s, so knowing where each farm is located provides valuable evidence to trace ancestors.

Other

Mawer, Simon. Ancestry: A Novel. Little, Brown UK, 2022.
This is a historical novel set in England in the 19th century. It’s based on the author’s genealogical research and is what I call “filled-in” non-fiction. The persons and historical background is real, but he filled in some details like discussions people had. I enjoyed the social history aspects of this book.