Hiemstra Genealogy Information

Related to Roger Hiemstra's Dutch Heritage

Since my retirement from college teaching this year, I have spent considerable time updating the genealogical information related to my lineage. Utilizing considerable information supplied to me by my distant cousin Kees deBoer in the Netherlands (I am deeply indebted to him), genealogical information I and my Mom (Frances Anson Hiemstra who died October 1, 2013) gathered for many years, and the Internet, I employed the genealogical software (Brothers Keeper) as my organizational and report creation tool to generate the information you will find through this site.

If you had an opportunity to read my first document (dated August, 1974), and the 1997 material that first appeared on my web page (last updated in 2000), you now will find lots of new information and several new features. As in any genealogical research and portrayal efforts, there is much missing information, no doubt considerable incorrect information, and information that is in need of updating. I urge anyone browsing my material to send me any needed details. This includes photos (attach them to emails or send them to me by requesting my mailing address) and any miscellaneous information that you deem important.

1. Descendants of Thomas (a Hiemstra ancestor). I begin with a portrayal of all the known descendants from what I believe to be my first Dutch ancestor, Thomas, whose name was recorded in a ledger. He was a man born around 1500 in the Netherlands. He and an unknown woman have produced a prodigious number of descendants as you will see. Thus, this is a lengthy document. Obviously, there were ancestors before Thomas, but seeking that information will require further research which I will attempt to do in the future. If you are a Hiemstra relative, use search feature of your browser to see if your name is included. Several photos are included at the end of this document.

2. Claude Hiemstra Ancestors. The second section starts with my father, Claude, and demonstrates visually the connection of his ancestors back to Thomas. You can click forward and backward via the active greater than (>) and less than (<) signs to move across the various ancestors.

3. Harm Hiemstra Descendants. The third section provides some photos related to each of childre of my grandfather and my grandmother. The name of each sibling provides a link to the information for that family with any photos I could access. Considerable information is missing as are many of the photos. I will be happy to receive any such information. If you can update any existing photos or provide different ones, I would very much appreciate it.

4. Notes and Vignettes. One enjoyable feature of doing genealogy research is discovering related stories about people, places, and communities. I have learned much during the past four decades by studying the Hiemstra name. I provide a few these stories here for those who enjoy learning more about a name and its history.

Roger (Rog) Hiemstra, Fayetteville, NY (USA), December 1, 2014