Omnummeren means to renumber. In the past, addresses often changed from one census/population register to the next. The houses would be omgenummerd; renumbered. This can make it difficult to find the modern locations of historical addresses. See tips for finding the address where your ancestors lived for some ideas. Some archives have omnummerlijsten (renumber lists) or omnummerregisters (renumber registers), either created in the past and part of their records, or created in the modern … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Uithangbord
13 June 2016 by Leave a Comment
An uithangbord is a sign hanging from the façade of a building. Many businesses had one. It served as advertising and as a form of address: people often referred to a house by the sign that hung from it. In old court records, you can sometimes find references to these signs, for example in phases like ". . . sells his inn at the Achterstraat, where the Red Lion hangs from." The photo below shows an example of such a sign, hanging from an inn that dates to 1677. … [Read more...]
7 Tips for Finding the Address of your Dutch Ancestors
6 May 2016 by Leave a Comment
Are you thinking about coming to the Netherlands to visit the bulb fields and visit the places where their ancestors lived? Depending on where your ancestors lived and how wealthy they were, it may not be easy to find out exactly where they lived. Here are some things you need to know when trying to find the address where your ancestors lived. 1: Addresses changed over time Addresses with a street name and house number are relatively modern. Some places, mainly large cities, had them by … [Read more...]
Dutch term: Wijk
17 November 2014 by 2 Comments
A wijk is a part of town: a district or neighborhood. Before the introduction of modern addresses, many houses were identified using their Wijk and housenumber only. You will see that your ancestor died in Wijk B number 298, for example. Maps from that period may show you where the Wijken were, but they will rarely show you the location of individual houses. … [Read more...]
Quick tip: addresses are a modern invention
30 July 2014 by 4 Comments
Addresses that consist of a street name and a number are a relatively modern invention. Until the 19th century, many houses in the Netherlands did not have addresses but only street names, and often unofficial ones at that. You may encounter descriptions like "the house at the end of the Lily Canal, where the Boars hangs out," followed by a list of neighbors so everybody knew where that house was. In the 19th century, many towns introduced a new system where the municipality was divided into … [Read more...]
