What do you mean I'm not 100% Dutch?

All my life I believed I was 100% Dutch. You see, my grandparents on my father's side and my great-grandparents on my mother's side immigrated to the United States from The Netherlands. Amature attempts at family genealogy brought up greats, great-greats and great-great-greats, all from or living in The Netherlands, so what was I to think? 

I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, an area where many folks from The Netherlands immigrated. They established towns named after provinces in their homeland, such as Holland and Zeeland. Many joined the furniture industry. Grand Rapids, at the time, was the Furniture Capital of the World. 

Growing up my favorite jump-rope song was - I'm a little Dutch girl dressed in blue. These are the things I used to do. Salute to the Captain, bow to the queen... - etc. Every year, in the public school I attended, we sold Dutch Babalars as a fund raiser. My grandmother always served Windmill cookies we dunked in milk or tea. 

The church I attended was Bethel Christian Reformed, a branch of the Dutch Reformed church brought to the United States by the influx of Dutch decendents.

Imagine my surprise, when on a recent cruise to see the tulips and windmills in The Netherlands, I came across information that clearly states that way back in the 1400's, 1500's and 1600's, my family lived in Belgium! Yes, that's correct. I'm Belgium at heart!  

So when did The Netherlands come into play? It appears that sometime in the middle 1600's, my 8th great-grandfather, Francois, fell in love and married a Dutch girl, named Janneke and moved to Hoek in the Province of Zeeland, The Netherlands. Francois, his father and four previous generations of family all lived in Belgium. 

Does this information really change who I am? No, but it adds an additional dynamic to what I have believed my whole ancestry to be. No longer just a little Dutch girl! 

Have you checked into your ancestoral lineage lately? If so, what surprises did you find? Did it change the way you feel about yourself? I'd love to hear your story! 

Please leave a comment below! 

******Contact: Sandra Warren      www.sandrawarren.com