On 13 June 1889, the Honorable G.J. Diekema summarized the history of Dutch immigration to Michigan at a meeting of the State Pioneers Association held in Lansing Michigan. His speech, "The Dutch in Michigan," was published in in the Dutch-language newspaper De Grondwet in Holland, Michigan on 25 June 1889. This is an English translation from that article. 

The Dutch in Michigan.

SPEECH, DELIVERED BY THE HON. G. J. DIEKEMA AT A MEETING OF THE STATE PIONEERS ASSOCIATION IN LANSING, MICH., JUNE 13, 1889.

Since the time when the Dutch first came to America, settled on Manhattan Island and founded New Amsterdam, the emigration in colonies from the Netherlands to America ceased completely until the year 1846, when a colony under the leadership of Rev. A. C. Van Raalte came to this country and settled in Western Michigan.

Two principal reasons led to this emigration, namely:

FIRST. The circumstances of the time were in the Netherlands, as in other countries of Europe, extremely unfavorable and became more and more oppressive for the working classes. Poverty was greatly increased by repeated failures of the potato harvest, which product was one of the principal foodstuffs for the poorer classes of the population in the Netherlands. Something had to be done to bring relief to the people. There was no chance of improving their condition in the mother country and only emigration could provide that desired outcome.

SECONDLY. There was great dissatisfaction among a large part of the Dutch people about the laws of the country concerning public worship. The Netherlands then, as now, had a Church, which, although not an actual State Church, was under the supervision and administration of the State. The preachers were appointed by the State and paid from the national treasury. No one was allowed to preach without permission, on penalty of a hundred guilders for each sermon delivered in violation of this. Naturally, discontent arose over such a state of affairs, and in 1834 seven Ministers rebelled, preached independently of the authority of the State, were expelled from the State Church, and immediately founded a church of their own. Their followers regarded them as martyrs to a holy cause, and thousands soon rallied to their banners.*

The officials of the government, wishing to suppress this revolt against the established Church, revived an antiquated law, which, though not expressly revoked, was no longer considered a law of the land at all. It formed part of the code of Napoleon, under whom Holland had been governed for a time before 1815, while it was part of the French Empire. In this law Napoleon, in order to suppress the free declaration of the people on subjects which were contrary to his interests, forbade all gatherings of more than nineteen persons for any purpose not recognized by law. This law, which had long been a means of oppressing the Dutchman loyal to his country, was now used by the House of Orange for a still more contemptible purpose. It was declared applicable to the assembly of the Separatists.

At first the Courts of Justice severely imposed heavy fines. These, however, were readily paid by the poor people from their small earnings, and fines and oppression only served to incite their zeal. The government soon became somewhat more sedate. On request, a special permit was given to each local congregation, on condition that it would support itself and its own poor. They had to pay their share in the maintenance of the established Church and the local poor, and to this was added the condition that they would renounce all claims to the material goods of the established Church. Here religious oppression was coupled with heavy financial obligations.

In the winter of the years 1845-46 a meeting was held of the leaders who were in favor of emigration. At this meeting a Commission was appointed to approach the government with a proposal to establish a colony in the Dutch East Indies and to settle on the highlands of Java. The government replied that it was not competent to favor such a plan on the religious foundation on which it rested. Attention was then directed to the Cape of Good Hope, but the choice did not fall on this country. At last it was decided to go to the land of good prospects, where freedom had found a home and where the weary soul could serve its Maker without legal restrictions.

On the 14th of September 1846 the first colony said farewell to its fatherland, looked for the last time upon the ground which contained the dear bones of their ancestors, and sailed from Rotterdam in the American ship "The Southerner" under the command of Captain Crosby.

Their leader was Rev. Albertus C. van Raalte, a solid young man, well educated in literature and theology. In him lived a large heart, a powerful mind and a great soul. He was a born leader. He spoke with irresistible eloquence and prepared all his plans with the skill and caution of a skilled statesman. He was the Moses, chosen by God, to lead his followers from a land of slavery to this Canaan of rest.

On the 4th of November 1846, after a stormy voyage of 47 days, they landed in New York. From New York they left by steamboat for Albany and from there via Buffalo and Cleveland to Detroit.

Although Wisconsin was for a long time the most thought of as their destination, the season was so far advanced when they reached Detroit that it was considered dangerous to go further that year.

Fortunately, work was found for the men at the St. Clair shipyards during the winter.

While at Detroit, Van Raalte and his party were warmly welcomed by Gen. Lewis Cass, Hon. Theodore Romeyn, Dr. Duffield, Hon. C. C. Trowbridge, and Rev. M. West. These men played a large part in keeping the Colony in Michigan.

It was long in doubt whether they would settle in the Saginaw Valley or in western Michigan. The reasons which finally led their leader to choose Western Michigan and to establish Holland in Ottawa County I wish to borrow chiefly from a speech made by him in Holland at the celebration of the fourth centennial of their settlement in 1872, when he spoke as follows:

"Although the Americans recommended the places near the rivers and generally thought it too risky to settle here; although the Dutch feared the great forests; although this place exposed my family to the greatest hardships of pioneer life, yet the confluence of so many advantages, even though they could be developed but slowly at first, left me no doubt as to my duty. I knew that the rich forest soil was best adapted for growing winter wheat and for dairying. That, in consequence of the manufacturing industry and shipping, much higher market prices could be obtained here than in the distant West. That the country near Lake Michigan was protected by the water from severe frost, and that it was an excellent region for tree fruits. I chose this place after due consideration, because of the great variety of its resources, and impressed with the idea that in order to develop the Dutch migration into a power, we must keep together for mutual aid, and that our surroundings must have this variety of resources, that labor and capital might be able to work there.

The object which I had in settling between the Kalamazoo and Grand rivers was to obtain the advantages which both offered for the employment of our laborers, and at the same time to establish a center for a united spiritual life and the labor of God's Kingdom."

On the 12th of February, 1847, the little Colony reached the spot chosen by its leader—the mouth of Black Lake, in Ottawa County. Time fails me to relate the great troubles and many privations which they endured. They did not understand the language of the people with whom they had to deal. They could not wield the woodman's axe; there were no roads, no open cultivated places, and no provisions nearer than Allegan. They had but little money, and must find work at once or suffer want; the number of their sick and dying soon increased, and there was no physician among them; but let it be recorded that in the midst of these great trials devotion to the principles for which they had left their native land, so full of sacred memories, held them up, and that they made the woods resound with the singing of their Psalms.

As soon as the news of their safe arrival and permanent settlement in Holland arrived, a general emigration to that country took place, which lasted during the years 1847-'49, the greater part of whom joined Van Raalte in Michigan. Then there was a standstill of about five years, when a new flood of emigration came, which lasted until the time of the [American Civil] war. Since the end of the war there has been a continuous influx so that now the Dutch emigrants and their descendants number no less than from 75 to 100,000.

The City of Holland had not enough industrial establishments to give employment to those who did not wish to devote themselves to agriculture, so that a great number went to the cities surrounding Holland, and the Hollanders in Grand Rapids, according to the calculation of the present Mayor, now number not less than 15,000.

Flourishing Colonies also exist in other parts of Kent and Ottawa Counties, and in the Counties of Kalamazoo, Allegan, Muskegon, Newaygo, Missaukee, Oceana, and Berrien.

Wherever the Dutch are found in Michigan, they possess the following principal qualities:

1. Industry and thrift. They are willing to work and save their earnings, so that whether they live in cities or in the country, they soon own their own homes. The agricultural region around Holland within a circle of 16 to 20 miles is entirely in their possession and they have made it a true paradise so that in solidity of buildings and fertility of soil it can compete with the older settlements of the State.

2. They are known for their honesty. A Dutchman's word is as good as his signature and that is as good as a mortgage on his farm. When this trait was once discovered by the American merchants, they gave the first colonists the opportunity to buy everything they needed on credit and saved them from many hardships. Thus virtue rewarded itself. It pains me to say that some of their descendants have learned the ways of the country and have not fully maintained the good name obtained by their fathers.

3. The third trait I wish to mention is religious loyalty. The religious inclination of a Dutchman is very great. As soon as the first settler had built a temporary home for himself, he began to build a house for God, and wherever you go in a Dutch settlement in Michigan today, you will always find a well-built, well-finished, and freshly painted church. The house of their worship must never show signs of decay. The country is literally strewn with churches, and what is better, they are always filled on Sundays. Neither rain nor wind prevents a Dutchman from attending religious services, and I am proud to say that this trait distinguishes his descendants.

One of the main ideas of the founder of the Dutch Colony was that in order to Americanize the Dutchman, in order to develop a strong and influential citizenry, a liberal policy of education must be followed. The free school was from the beginning a favorite institution, and as early as 1851, only three years after the first settlers had arrived, a "pioneer school" was opened, in which opportunity was given for higher education. This "school" was placed under the care of the Reformed Dutch Church of America, and was soon known as the "Holland Academy" and later as "Hope College." Of the 134 students of this College, 67 studied theology and became ministers. I do not believe that there is another College in this country that has 50 per cent of its students in the pulpit. This clearly shows that the sons of the emigrants of 1847 are filled with the same religious zeal and spirit that inspired their fathers.

Besides the students of the College, hundreds have been educated in the preparatory school connected with it, and as the sons and daughters of this institution have entered society to undertake each their various tasks, of which the teaching in our schools was not the least, they have permeated the entire population with their good influence and have contributed much to that complete Americanization of our citizens which, in comparison with other regions, where foreigners have settled in large numbers, is indeed surprising, so that Gov. Bagley, when he attended a reunion of his regiment in Holland in 1875, after having stayed with us for two days, asked that a Dutchman be shown to him before he left.

The Dutch have played their full part in the material development of the State. They have always been quiet and obedient to the laws. They become citizens of the country as soon as the law permits them to do so. They love their adopted country, and during the Civil War they fought with the same heroism that distinguished them when they drew the sword under the House of Orange. I firmly believe that when a future historian writes the history of this great State of ours, he will not do his task properly unless he sketches the influence of the Dutch in Michigan.

--
*It seems to us that our friend here and in what follows does not do full justice to the religious movement which resulted in the "Secession" in the Netherlands. —Ed. Grwt.
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On this 136th anniversary of a great tragedy, we share the story of the Great Fire of Lake City on 4 July 1888. 

After a lovely day of Independence Day celebrations, Lake City had a night that was definitely not the greatest Fourth in the north. A fire started downtown late at night, and over many hours consumed most of the business district and several homes. It wasn't the first nor the last major fire in Lake City, but likely still holds the record for most destruction. 

The document linked below is a preview chapter from a forthcoming book on 19th century tragedies in Missaukee County. 

​Read the full story of the Great Fire of 1888!

​

On this 158th Anniversary of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, DutchRoot presents a profile of W.W. Gorthy (1842-1930), the last surviving member of the posse that captured Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth.

Gorthy's association with the dramatic end of the Civil War is what made him notable to folks beyond Missaukee County, Michigan, where he spent most of his adult life. But to the locals, Gorthy was already a known and colorful character among many veterans of the American Civil War.  

Eventually, Gorthy had three wives, eleven children, and at least three scrapes with the law. He helped pioneer a town in northern Michigan, and was instrumental in Moorestown's innovative logging railroads in the rush to harvest the old forests. 

Gorthy wasn't particularly rich of influential, and not many have rushed to write his biography, but his consistent colorful presence in the story of Missaukee's origins runs like a shiny vein of ore through the foundational history of the area. It's a tale worth telling. 

Linked below is a document that captures details of W.W. Gorthy's life as compiled from original sources, along with transcriptions of his narrative of encountering Booth (appearing in the National Tribune, 10 February 1927) and his obituary (Cadillac Evening News, 26 April 1930). 

As a follow up to the Early History of Missaukee, I've been researching some of the shocking events of the 19th century in Missaukee County. I hope to publish them as a book called Missaukee Murder & Mayhem. It's a project I work on in my spare time, so it's taken me years to squeeze out a few pages. And I feel like I'm about halfway after several years. 

One of the well-known stories of the early days was the murder of Jan and Catalina Jagt, who were murdered in their home near Vogel Center in 1884. The basics have been often repeated through the years in various publications. But recently, after visiting with folks for the Vogel Center Christian Reformed Church 150th Anniversary in the summer of 2022, I found several rich sources that filled in a much colorful detail surrounding the investigation, arrest, and trial of the killer. One of the keys was finding Dutch-language sources that followed the events closely, as Vogel Center was a Dutch-speaking community at the time. I was also able to find more genealogical data on several of the players in this story, deepening their back stories and the aftermath of these events.  

Since my process is slow and the story fascinating, I'm sharing a draft of the chapter on the Jagt murders as it currently stands. It may well change if I find new sources, but there's plenty to chew on here already.  

UPDATE: The latest draft of this chapter is dated 26 October 2022, linked below:

One of the first works regarding Missaukee history that I discovered was George Stout's history, which covers the years from 1871-1917, beginning with the political organization of the county. The version I first found had been re-typed and photocopied in the Fred C. Hirzel collection of papers. Hirzel, in his transcription, added a number of his own comments and observations, creating something like a conversation between them. 

Because Stout's history ends abruptly in 1917, both Hirzel and I assumed that Stout wrote it in 1917 and simply ran out of material. However, back in 2016 I found and photographed in the Lake City Ardis public library a hand-typed dog-eared version of Stout's work that seemed more original. And yet, it wasn't until 2022 that I took a good look at the photographs. Upon examination, I believe this copy is Stout's hand-typed and hand-corrected original--the very first copy that Stout composed even as he typed. 

This original manuscript is typed on the backside of spare “Northern Michigan Road Commissioners' Association” stationery, which dates to 1939. Stout, who served as a Missaukee road commissioner through the 1930s, is himself listed on the stationery masthead as the association’s Secretary. The president noted in the masthead is Frank N. Smith, who served one year, in 1939 (County Road Association of Michigan, “2019-2020 CRA Member Directory,” page 12, 2019). In the document itself, Stout comments about the state of Missaukee roads in 1941 on page 30, so the work is at least as recent as 1941.
​
Notably, this original also corrects a number of typos, words, lines, and paragraphs that were corrupted by the time Hirzel had found a poor quality copy and retyped it as best he could. Elements that were confusing in Hirzel's version make more sense in this original. ​

A transcribed version of Stout's 1941 history was included in my 2016 "Early History of Missaukee County: A Reader," and this new updated transcription will be included in whatever next version of the Reader I might manage to publish. 
​
​For now, here's a standalone updated version of that chapter and Stout's 1941 history. 

One of the sources Stout used for his 1941 work was his own publication from 1892, called "The Story of a Year in Missaukee County." It was a booklet published by the Independent in January of 1892. It was reprinted in January 1936 in the Republican. 

An updated transcript of that work is also available here. 

Fred C. Hirzel recounts a story of celebrating Independence Day circa 1893 in Moorestown, Missaukee County, Michigan, just a decade after the town's founding.  

Mr. William Cantwell, Sr. was the life of every Fourth of July celebration. In celebrating this day, Moorestown and Stittsville alternated about annually. Mr. Cantwell would organize and the “horribles,” and the pageant that they put on is something to make one fairly wish for the return of the good old days.

​At one Fourth of July celebration held at Moorestown, at least 100 “horribles” trained by Wm. Cantwell took part. They were divided about equally as “Infantry” (White men) and “Wild Indians” on horseback. The village was flanked in those days by dense forest on the west and north edges. The infantry was parading for the entertainment of the celebrators, which had come from as far away as Cadillac and even Reed City and have been estimated to have numbered 1000 on that day in Moorestown.

​The “Indians” suddenly emerged from the woods, surprising the “White Infantry” and before the commanding officer could rally his forces and disperse the enemy, several had been “shot” and either “killed” of “mortally wounded.” These troops and Indians had been so secretly and so well trained by Cantwell in the upper story of the J.H. Moores Sawmill that many of the spectators actually believed, for the moment at least, that the fight was “the real thing.” “Captain” Albert Bulson, pierced by a bullet from an Indian’s rifle, plunged headlong to the ground from the back of his horse which was galloping at full speed. Bulson was a wrestler of some local note and was able to take the jolt he got when he came in contact with the earth. The reckless abandon with which he threw himself from the horse caused many to think that perhaps he had really been shot.

At this time, “Doctor” Cantwell dashed up, riding a small Western pony. Cantwell had clothes made to order for the occasion. The trousers had a waist measurement of at least 60 inches and were stuffed with straw or other material. There was no flap on the front to cover the buttons which had been cut from the butts of shingles and measured about four inches in circumference. He had on a pair of shoes which he constructed from cedar splints and tarred paper. They were an excellent imitation of shoes and measured approximately 1 foot in width and three feet in length. He used horse collars for stirrups. When Doctor Cantwell reached the place where the wounded man was already laying on an “operating table,” he pulled his feet from the stirrups, stood erect, and the horse walked from beneath him. Cantwell  then quickly administered a couple of huge dough pills, and then, opening his medical kit with a cold chisel and a hammer, produced a rusty handsaw and began to “amputate” Bulson’s leg. An edging (a piece of wood about an inch square and a couple feet long) had been conveniently placed along side his leg for Doctor Cantwell to saw on. This he did without removing the trousers, cutting through them, A woman in the crowd actually fainted dead away.

Bulson, then having “died” in the operation, was doubled up and pushed into a sugar barrel, which was lowered into an already-prepared grave. While the funeral services at the grace were in progress, the Indians again suddenly emerged from the forest, drove away the “militia,” and crashed huge rocks into the grave on the coffin. There was screaming from the spectators and another woman, who had withstood the first ordeal, fainted. Bulson, of course, was safe; his sugar barrel coffin having been placed at the end of another barrel previously buried and with both ends out, he had crawled through same and through a subterranean tunnel to safety under a brush heap. Of course, this was unknown except to those who had planned it.

Mind you, in those days there was only one store in Moorestown. This was owned and operated by my father, Godfrey Hirzel, who was, first, last, and all the time, interested mostly in providing for the people a good time on the Fourth of July, regardless of the cost. My father had the Hon. Perry F. Powers there from Cadillac to deliver the oration of the day. The Cadillac City Brass Band of many pieces furnished continuous music from mid-forenoon until late at night and during the act of shooting off of $300.00 worth of excellent fire-works, all of which was provided at my father’s expense. Of course, he was not exactly trying to see how much money he could throw away. He had in operation a good clean dance hall at which 16 sets of square dancing went on from the morning of the fourth until the morning of the fifth. He had at least three stands besides the store selling pop, ice cream, candy, cigars, fire crackers, etc. Everyone was happy. There were races and games of all kinds with substantial prizes and cash and goods given by my father. This was probably 1893 or 1894. 

​-Fred C. Hirzel

In an effort to identify gaps in the public record, I've attempted to document the early newspapers of Missaukee county and note which are available in the archives. 

By way of summary, here's a shorter list. The more complete document is linked as a PDF. 

Missaukee Reporter (1873-1875)

• Published by Singleton W. Davis, Lake City, October 1873 - 23 October 1875

Lake City (Republican) Journal (1877-1884)

• First issue, 27 April 1877 (v1, n1), Ren Barker, Editor
• September 1883, H.N. McIntyre begins publishing the Leader (politically independent)
• Last Journal issue by Ren Barker was 29 Apr 1884 (v8 n2); Barker sold the Journal H.N. McIntyre; it was combined with Leader, as the New Era (independent)
• The New Era was published by H.N. McIntyre: 29 Apr 1884 – Jan 1887
• The Republican, by W.E. Morris & Son, begins publication in Dec 1886
• Jan 1887, McIntyre sells New Era to D.M. Day, but reclaims it later that year, merges with Morris and creates Era & Republican
• In July 1888, the Era & Republican offices burned, and shortly afterwards McIntyre sold out; the paper was renamed Republican (see below)

Missaukee Independent (1887-1892)

• Begins 16 March 1887 (v1 n1), published by Woodruff
• Archive ends 23 Mar 1892 (v5 n52); missing 1892-03-29 (v6 n1) – 1892-12-07 (v6 n37)
• https://www.loc.gov/item/sn98066970/  

The Plain Dealer (1892-1919)

• George Stout changes Independent name to Plain Dealer on 14 Dec 1892 (Vol 6 No 38)
• https://www.loc.gov/item/sn98058166/

McBain Chronicle (1890 – 1964)

• L. Van Meter, publisher
• Not in archive

Missaukee Republican

• See above; circa 1888 the Era & Republican was renamed Republican
• 1888-1905 Not in Archive
• Missaukee Republican archive begins 25 May 1905 (v22 n1)
• Was published until 1963
• https://www.loc.gov/item/sn98066988/ 

Lake City Waterfront, June 17, 1959 – 1995

• https://www.loc.gov/item/sn98066974/
• LIB OF MICH NEWSPAPER MICROFILM 2S

Missaukee Sentinel, December 20, 1990

• Missaukee Sentinel. 1990-2008 LIB OF MICH NEWSPAPER MICROFILM 2S

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Happy 180th Birthday to my Great-Great-Grandfather, Tamme Jans Koster.

​He was born in Hornhuizen, De Marne, Groningen, Netherlands on 29 Dec 1841 to Jan Pieters Tammes Koster and Aaltje Dijkhuis, very near the coast of the North Sea. Father JPT and mother Aaltje had 5 children, but the first died as an infant, leaving Tamme the oldest of four.

Tamme's mother Aaltje died when he was 15, and his father JPT remarried a year later, to Johanna Pilon.

At age 25, Tamme married 20-year-old Grietje Blaauw in April of 1867, and a month later they were on a boat, bound for America, along with several other families from their area. They settled in Spring Lake Michigan, which was at the mouth of the Grand River; there lumbering and mill work was plentiful as the logs came down the river. They had 8 children, but lost 2 of them. After about a decade, they bought a farm east of Spring Lake in Crockery township, just off the Grand River, along with Tamme's father and step-mother.

But, after about 5 years, Tamme died on 1 May 1882, leaving Grace as a 35-year-old widow with 6 children. Furthermore, this is about the time the lumber work dried up on the Grand River and the area became economically depressed. Tamme probably bought the land because he could see the end coming. Widow Grace shortly eventually remarried to Jakob VanderLaan, and they moved north to Missaukee county, along with some of the same families that came as a group from the Netherlands twenty years earlier. Kosters, Blaauws, and Vanderlaans have been a part of Missaukee ever since.

Tamme is likely buried in the Koster family plot in Spring Lake cemetery. His father JPT and step-mother Johanna have markers, as do later relatives, but Tamme and his two deceased children do not, at least not anymore. However, JPT had bought the plot at the same time Tamme's first child died, which was probably the first death in the extended family in America, so it stands to reason that JPT bought the plot for that first infant and all the Kosters that followed.

Happy 175th Birthday to my 2nd great grandmother, Grietje "Grace" Blaauw Koster VanderLaan! She was born on 17 Jul 1846 to Wietse Blaauw and Neeltje Bolheem, the 3rd of 4 children, in Niekerk, Grootegast, Groningen, Netherlands. Her father died when she was 6 years old. Her mother remarried 8 years later, when Grace was 14.

She married Tamme Jans Koster at age 20 in 1867, and was on a boat for America within a month of the wedding, along with several families from her hometown.

She and Tamme settled in Spring Lake, Michigan, where lumbering and mill work was plentiful. After a decade, they bought a farm in Crockery township in north-western Ottawa county, Michigan. Together they had 8 children and lost 2. After 20 years in the Spring Lake area, Tamme died, leaving Grace a widow at age 35 with 6 children.

The lumbering industry in the Grand River valley was depleted, and after two years she married a widower, Jacob VanderLaan, and moved to Missaukee county along with some of the same families with whom she immigrated. She had three more children with Jake, and lived most of her life as a VanderLaan in Missaukee.

​Around age 78, she went back to Spring Lake for a visit, and died and was buried there, across the street from the probable grave of her first husband. Her grave was paid for by her second husband, VanderLaan, but the marker names her as a Koster.

​Happy 220th Birthday to my great-great-great-grandmother, Harmina Jans Boom!

Harmina was born in Beekbergen, Apeldoorn, Gelderland, Netherlands on 29 September 1799, to Jan Evarts Boom and Janna Harmens, and baptized in the Reformed church in Beekbergen on 6 October 1799. She was 5th of 11 children born, only 5 of which lived to adulthood. Her mother Janna died when Harmina was only 11 years old. Her father remarried, and his second wife had another 6 children.

At age 25, Harmina married Derk Jan van der Meij, who already had three children and had been widowed at age 29 when his first wife, Aaltjen Frederika Westerhuis, died in March of 1824. Harmina and Derk married 5 Feb 1825, and had the first of ten children together that November. Sadly, their first three children were either stillborn or died in infancy. Their other seven children lived to adulthood. Most of them never left Gelderland, but their youngest, Jan Willem van der Meij, born 25 Jan 1842, eventually immigrated to America.

At age 23, Jan Willem married Johanna Hendrika Groenouwe in 1865. They had two children in Gelderland and boarded a boat in 1871, eventually settling in Chicago, but wife Johanna appears to have died either on the journey or shortly after arrival. In Chicago, Jan Willem remarried in 1872 to Anna Jeltes Nederhood, who already had a son. They had a daughter in Illinois, and then moved to Missaukee county in northern Michigan, around 1873. There they had three more children.

Back in Gelderland, mother Harmina died on 13 Nov 1875, at age 76. After a couple decades in Missaukee, Anna died in 1895, leaving Jan widowed again, at age 53. He married a another widow that same year, Marrechien Martens Brinks, his third wife.

Jan Willem’s oldest, Dederika Willemina van der Meij, who was born back in Gelderland, married Roelof Geerts Brinks in Vogel Center, Missaukee, Michigan, on 04 Apr 1885. Their youngest (of six) was my grandfather, Herman Brinks.