When I visited Salt Lake City earlier this year, I was once again reminded that the Dutch are the tallest people on earth. At 1.75m (5'9"), I'm a bit above average height for a woman in the Netherlands, but in the US I was taller than most men and women. Here in the Netherlands, almost all of my male friends and some of my female friends are over 6' tall. At 6'5", my husband is considered to be tall, but not unusually so. This Youtube video explains that in the past 150 years, Dutch men have … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Emigrants often used agents
23 December 2015 by 3 Comments
Did you ever wonder how your emigrant ancestors bought their tickets and how they knew where to find a ship to go to America? By the end of the 1840s, many shipping companies had agents in most of the emigration hot spots. Emigrants would be able to purchase tickets form these agents, who would arrange for their travel to the harbor and for the trip across the Atlantic. Agents often advertised in newspapers to make people aware of their services. By searching newspapers for the town where your … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Emigrant names were often phonetic equivalents
2 December 2015 by Leave a Comment
If you're trying to figure out what the original name of your immigrant ancestor was, don't just focus on official translations, but also figure out what names may have sounded the same. For example, a woman named Jessica in Australia may well have been called Tjitske. A man named Dick (short for Richard) in the United States may well have been Dirk (short for Theodorus) in the Netherlands, even though the official translation would have been Theodore. A Dutch woman named Aaltje may have … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Religion affected more than just the church they attended
4 November 2015 by 1 Comment
Religion did not just determine where people went to church, but also whom they hung out with. It determined where children went to school, what choirs they sang in and what gym clubs they joined. People met their partners in church and formed friendships and family bonds that survived emigration to other countries. See this overview of popular destinations per religion to see where some groups went. … [Read more...]
Source – Staten van Landverhuizers
24 July 2015 by 5 Comments
In the 1840s, when religious tensions were high and crops were failing, many people left the Netherlands to start a new life in America. The national government wanted to know what was going on. Since 1848, they required each province to keep lists of emigrants, the "Staten van Landverhuizers" [tables of emigrants]. Between 1831 and 1847, only numbers were recorded, but since 1848 the heads of households were listed. Contents of the Staten van Landverhuizers The provincial lists were compiled … [Read more...]
Popular destinations per religion
12 June 2015 by 29 Comments
People who emigrated, usually did so in groups of like-minded people. One thing that bound them was religion. If your ancestor was Roman Catholic, he probably went where other Roman Catholics lived and where you find one Christian Reformed emigrant, you will probably find several. Here are some destinations I found in my own research of 19th century emigrants, plus destinations that readers supplied in the comments: Destinations of Dutch Reformed emigrants Chicago, Illinois Clymer, New … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Check for logical migration patterns
3 June 2015 by 2 Comments
If you find a source that shows that your family originally came from elsewhere, check that the migration path they followed is logical. A few things to watch out for: People usually went from rural areas to urban areas. It's rare to find people moving from an urban area to a rural area, or from one rural area to another rural area. Before say 1850, most people did not move around a lot. Exceptions exist, like skippers, people who worked for fairs and traveling salesmen. Before say 1750, … [Read more...]
Lecture – From the Achterhoek to America
19 October 2014 by Leave a Comment
Last week, I gave a lecture about emigration from the Achterhoek to America in the 19th century. I was invited by the historical society of Aalten, Dinxperlo and Wisch, of which I am a member. The interest was overwhelming, they kept having to find more chairs to seat everyone. The Achterhoek is the eastern part of the province of Gelderland. Between 1840 and 1920, over 6,000 people from this region emigrated to the United States, mostly from the towns of Aalten, Dinxperlo, Varsseveld and … [Read more...]
Dutch term: Landverhuizer
19 August 2013 by Leave a Comment
The word landverhuizer means somebody who moved to another country. It's the term most 19th century records use when referring to emigrants. Knowing this term can help to find lists of emigrants ("staten van landverhuizers") in catalogs of repositories. Read more about landverhuizers in the column "Land movers." … [Read more...]
Cold Case: do you recognize these Frisian emigrants?
26 July 2013 by Leave a Comment
Tresoar, the Regional Historical Center for the province of Friesland, has a new Cold Case project. They are looking for the names of the people in two movies created in 1932 and 1936. The movies were show emigrants who came back to Friesland for Friezendei [Frisians day]. Since the late nineteenth century, thousands of people from Friesland emigrated, mostly to the United States. Big reunions took place in 1932 and 1936 (and again in 2000). … [Read more...]
