My Dutch cousins visiting Nashville, Tennessee in May of 2011 from the Netherlands. From left to right: Henk B. Walvoort, Scott Walvoord, and Henk J. Walvoort.
(This post is a repeat post from October 3, 2011)
When I visited The Netherlands in 1997, I met a distant cousin from Zelhem, Gelderland near where the Walvoort family originated. His name is Henk J. Walvoort. You may recall reading about him on my Kinships Page.
Henk J. Walvoort and Henk B. Walvoort are first cousins. Henk is a nickname for Hendrik. Hendrik is a very popular name within the Walvoort/Walvoord family and has been in use for many generations.
Their grandparents were Hendrik Jan Walvoort (1872-1948) and Hendrika Willemina (Rutgers) Walvoort (1877-1951).
Hendrik Jan Walvoort (1872-1948) and Hendrika Willemina (Rutgers) Walvoort (1877-1951) Photo circa 1906
Last May, Henk J. Walvoort and Henk B. Walvoort visited the United States. This was Henk J. Walvoort’s first visit to America. Henk B. Walvoort had been in the USA three times since 1990.
After arriving in Chicago from The Netherlands, Henk and Henk experienced two days of torrential downpours of rain. They began their travels south and stopped in Nashville and stayed with my family one night. I took them to the The Hermitage; the home of our 7th President, Andrew Jackson.
Henk J. Walvoort, Scott Walvoord, and Henk B. Walvoort at the Hermitage near Nashville, Tennessee
They then traveled southwest to West Monroe, Louisiana to visit Ann Walvoord Graff, another cousin who had met them in The Netherlands in May of 2010.
Henk J. Walvoort, Ann (Walvoord) Graff, and Henk B. Walvoort at the Coca-Cola Museum in Monroe, Louisiana
After leaving Louisiana, they went to Kilgore, Texas to visit the East Texas Oil Museum. Henk B. Walvoort had visited this before and was so impressed he wanted to visit it again.
Next, the plan was to visit my Uncle Gary Walvoord in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, however, a traffic tie up caused them to make a detour to a small town west of there.
Henk B. Walvoort is a pig farmer near Aalten, Gelderland and also grows corn, potatoes and grain. They know fellow Dutch farmers who farm near the towns of Dimmitt and Hart in the Texas Panhandle and visited them and then traveled to Amarillo, Texas and stayed with my parents.
They had dinner at the home of David and Peggy Walvoord (my parents). Also at dinner was my brother Kit Walvoord, my nephew Kirk Walvoord, my Uncle Randy Walvoord, and family friends Bruce and Rosie Das. Bruce and Rosie also have Dutch ancestry and lived in Groningen, which is the capital city of The Netherlands province of the same name. Bruce and Rosie were in ministry with the Navigators in Groningen for many years and were able to practice their Dutch language skills with Henk and Henk.
Tombstone of Gerrit and Berendena Walvoord in Holland, Nebraska
After visiting Amarillo and the surrounding area they traveled to the northeast through Kansas to Holland, Nebraska (20 miles south from Lincoln). First they visited the cemetery of the small village Holland (population 140). They saw a lot of graves of Walvoords, Kolstees and other names of their area in The Netherlands. A neighbor of the cemetery gave them the address of Mr. Huenink who is the administrator of the church and the cemetery. He showed them the church with the little windmill and phoned a family called Walvoord, but they were not at home.
Then they traveled through Iowa to Des Moines to visit the World Pork Expo which was held on the Iowa State Fairgrounds, in Des Moines June 8th-10th.
Later they went to Pella, Iowa which is a very ‘Dutch’ small city.
Going east they visited John Deere Factory and Historic Site in Davenport and Moline.
Walvoord Cemetery, Cedar Grove, Wisconsin
Their last three days were spent in the area of Cedar Grove and Oostburg, Wisconsin. First they met Randy Walvoord, the strawberry farmer from Smies/Walvoord Road. He showed them the Walvoord cemetery near the bank in Cedar Grove.
Then they visited Mr. and Mrs. Van Sluys on the Smies Road. Carol makes beautiful paintings of landscapes.
Henk and Henk visited George and Carol (Walvoord) Van Sluys. They live on the Smies Road.
Henk and Henk also visited David and Janet Walvoord in Oostburg
Henk and Henk visited Walvoord Road located between Ooostburg and Cedar Grove, Wisconsin
Henk and Henk also visited the Historic Landmark Christiaan Walvoord Home while in Wisconsin
Such fun to read the account of oousins visit to America of the Wolvoord family.
surprised to read your parents live in Amerillo, Texas as my husbands family had relative who moved to Amerillo to homestead in the early years. Thanks for sharing.