Whenever I research emigrant families, I'm amazed by the distances that they travelled. People who previously probably hadn't even left their province yet, ended up circumventing half the globe. Sometimes it didn't stop there, and after a few years they packed up and moved again. … [Read more...]
Other resources
16 May 2005 by 1 Comment
There are many other people who have researched the Phoenix disaster and written about it. This page gives an overview of online and paper resources with more information about this tragic event. … [Read more...]
Daane, Peter
13 May 2005 by 13 Comments
Peter Daane was one of the Dutch emigrants who settled in Wisconsin and managed to establish a thriving business there. He fought for the Union during the Civil war. He is considered as the founder of Oostburg, WI. To this day, his descendants live in that area. … [Read more...]
Hesselink, Gerrit and Willemina Mennink
7 May 2005 by 2 Comments
Gerrit Hesselink and Willemina Mennink emigrated from their farm in Aalten to Wisconsin. They were relatively well-to-do and established a thriving farm that still exists today. … [Read more...]
Geerlings, Gerrit and Aaltien de Vries
20 April 2005 by 2 Comments
Gerrit Geerlings was a member of the Secession in the Netherlands and involved in the creation of many new Seceder churches. He emigrated to the United States together with his entire family of seven children. Unfortunately, they ended up on the vessel Phoenix which took them across the Great Lakes but perished off the shores of Sheboygan. The Geerlings family was one of the luckiest (or should we say, "least unlucky") families on board, because only two of the children were lost while … [Read more...]
Droppers, Garrit Jan and Janna Geertruid Vardink
9 April 2005 by 5 Comments
Garrit Jan Droppers and Janna Geertruid Vardink were one of the families who decided to emigrate even though they were already middle aged. The benefit of this was that they had grown up children who could help them build a new life. Because several letters of this couple still exist, a lot is known about their experiences in the United States. … [Read more...]
Duenk, Evert Jan and Willemina Rensink
9 April 2005 by 2 Comments
Evert Jan DUENK and Willemina RENSINK emigrated from Aalten to Sheboygan, WI. Later in life, they did not get along, as can be seen from an advertisement in the Dutch newspaper Nieuwsbode. … [Read more...]
Esselinkpas, Hendrik Jan
9 April 2005 by Leave a Comment
Hendrik Jan Esselinkpas was one of the survivors of the Phoenix disaster. He later settled in Michigan. His son corresponded about his father's memories of the disaster with William O. Van Eyck. … [Read more...]
