There are two regions in the east of the Netherlands that often get confused: Twente and the Achterhoek. Twente is the eastern part of the province of Overijssel. Major towns are Enschede, Hengelo, Almelo, and Oldenzaal. The Achterhoek is the eastern part of the province of Gelderland. Major towns are Winterswijk, Groenlo, Lochem, and Zutphen. … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Achterhoek resources at Genealogiedomein
15 April 2020 by 1 Comment
The website Genealogiedomein has resources for research in the eastern part of Gelderland, the area known as the "Achterhoek." Available resources include: Transcribed church records before 1811 Transcribed civil registration records after 1811 Indexed census records Indexes or transcriptions of court records Indexes or transcriptions of tax records Indexes or transcriptions of notarial records Links to online scans on other websites. The resources are organized by … [Read more...]
Dutch Archives that provide Free Scanning on Demand
23 June 2017 by 5 Comments
In the Netherlands, archives provide their already digitized records available online for free. But several archives go a step further, and also allow you to request documents to be scanned free of charge. These archives have allocated budget for digitizing their collection. Part of this budget is used for larger projects, and another part is used for scanning-on-demand where the users determine the order in which the records get digitized. The resulting scans are attached to the finding aids … [Read more...]
Ask Yvette – A research plan for an 18th-century brick wall ancestor
21 August 2015 by 2 Comments
Reader Rob Ton wondered what other sources he might consult to identify the parents of his brick wall ancestor Aert Ton. Aert Ton was married in Heerewaarden, a village in Gelderland, on 19 May 1737 to Hendersken van Neerlangen. Neither his marriage nor his burial record identifies his parents. Since this is a common problem that many of you are facing, I thought I'd share how I create a research plan. I have never done any research in Heerewaarden before, so you can see how I discover what … [Read more...]
Worst case of pedigree collapse ever?
16 May 2014 by 55 Comments
My father's side of the family comes from a small village in the east of Gelderland called Winterswijk. Because so many of his ancestors came from that place, I am reconstructing its entire population. Doing such a one-place-study has given me a deeper understanding of life in that village and allowed me to make some interesting discoveries and observations along the way. Roerdink family from Winterswijk One of the families I am researching, the Roerdinks, belonged to the farmer elite of … [Read more...]
Quick tip: find transcriptions of Achterhoek sources on Genealogiedomein
27 November 2013 by Leave a Comment
Are your ancestors originally from the eastern part of Gelderland known as the Achterhoek? The website Genealogiedomein has hundreds of (free) transcriptions in PDF-format. Most of the transcribed records are church records (baptisms, marriages and burials) from before 1811, but there is also a growing number of indexes of civil registration records (birth, marriages and deaths) after 1811. Just click the name of the municipality in the list on the left and then select the category. Some handy … [Read more...]
Gelders Archief at new location
18 June 2013 by 2 Comments
The Gelders Archief, the regional historical center for the province of Gelderland, moved to a new building. On the very first day it was open to the public (18 June 2013), I went there for some research. … [Read more...]
Patterns of emigration from the Achterhoek
12 June 2011 by 4 Comments
This week I gave a presentation about patterns of emigration from the Achterhoek, based on my genealogical research. The presentation was part of the conference 'The importance of history for Dutch-Americans', organized by AADAS (the Association for the Advancement of Dutch-American Studies). Because I was not able to attend the conference in person, I pre-recorded it. I've now made the recording available online. … [Read more...]
Gelderland
9 May 2005 by 3 Comments
Gelderland is a province in the east of the Netherlands. It borders on Germany to the east, Overijssel, Flevoland and Utrecht to the north, Noord-Brabant to the south and Zuid-Holland and Utrecht to the west. The capital city of Gelderland is Arnhem. Other large towns are: Nijmegen Apeldoorn Zutphen Doetinchem Tiel … [Read more...]
