INTRODUCTION

The desire of Americans to know more of their "roots" has been increasing ever since Alex Haley wrote his famous book. Americans who trace their ancestry to the county of Bentheim in West Germany are no exception. However, there is little written in English about this group of people or the land they came from. Hopefully this book will give readers a clearer understanding of their cultural heritage as well as serve as a reference book for local genealogy.

The county of Bentheim has a long history, well documented in German. We did not include a chronological history here. Instead, there is a series of short articles on different subjects designed to give the reader a better background on the situation in Bentheim during the nineteenth century. A number of translations of original documents are included. The translations and the articles are by Swenna Harger, herself an immigrant from Bentheim. Swenna immigrated as a newlywed in 1952 with her husband Jan. She has been active in local genealogical circles for many years and has worked at the Dutch Village for twenty years during the tourist season. Her and Jan have conducted several tours to Bentheim and other places in Europe.

We decided at the onset to try to identify as many Bentheimer emigrants as possible. Little did we know that this could be a never-ending job. We have recorded nearly three thousand individuals after researching many sources, here and abroad. These records don't always agree so forgive us for any error you might find. In fact, do more than forgive us, let us know, so it can be corrected. More records will be available in the future. Perhaps this section will be updated and printed again someday. Hopefully, you will find your ancestors in this edition.

Few of the nineteenth century immigrants ever returned to Bentheim. Letters were the main form of contact with their relatives back home. Some of these letters survive and we have included a few of them. Several Bentheimers wrote short memoirs, which have been published elsewhere. If you haven't read them already we encourage you to do so.

All the traffic between Bentheim and America hasn't been one way. Many Americans with an interest in Bentheim have visited there. We have included several articles related to this. Perhaps this book will kindle some desire on the readers’ part to see this land their ancestors called home.

Loren Lemmen July, 1990

This volume, a product of persistent devotion, has reconstructed the main features of an immigrant community in the U.S.A., which has long been improperly identified with its neighbors. Before the Civil War people from the German county of Bentheim came to Michigan along with many of the Dutch folk who settled the Holland Colony. They have been so thoroughly acculturated in the Dutch-American context that even many of the Bentheimers have forgotten their German origins. This book will not only correct such misimpressions, but also provide researchers and the immigrants' descendants with precise information about nearly all the immigrants who originated in Bentheim. In addition the first segment provides an informative background, which explains the specific characteristics of Bentheim's culture. That is an important and necessary prelude to understanding the culture of Bentheimers who may be happily among the Dutch, but were not originally of them.

Swenna Harger and Loren Lemmen have rendered a favor to those who have an interest in family history originating in Grafschaft Bentheim, Germany. Grafschaft (meaning "county") Bentheim resembles a jigsaw puzzle piece in shape and forms a small section of Germany's western border with the Netherlands. It lies adjacent to the Dutch provinces of Drenthe and Overijssel. Many emigrants from Bentheim settled in western and northern Michigan in such places as Graafschap, Lucas, and Fremont.

Along with particular details of family information that can be found by scanning passenger lists and emigrant records, there are chapters dealing with such topics as birth, marriage and burial customs, whether Bentheimers were Dutch or German, and the weaving industry in Bentheim. Captions for other chapters include "Under Napoleon Bonaparte", "Unrest in Church and State" and "Dr. Jellema Visits Bentheim".

Mrs. Harger, author of much of the narrative, writes from firsthand experience, having lived in Bentheim and having emigrated from there as an adult. I recommend this book to those whose ancestors came from Grafschaft Bentheim and to libraries wishing to add to their genealogical collections books of immigrant settlement.