Holland to America

Yesterday I read my Great-Grandfather's journal for about the fifth time. It is from when he came to America on the ship and through America on the train. If my memory is right, I had it in one of my reports when I was in school... after it was translated by my grandmother's cousin who came to visit from Holland in 1988. Oh, yes, that's right. Now I remember everyone passing my booth at the Junior High Culture Fair - they would look at the the title of my project "Holland to America", take a piece of Gouda, make a "funny" comment on my Dutch Bonnet, and say, "Oooh, That's so neat!" (referring to the translated journal). Then most people would move on.

When my (*MMP) Great-Grandfather was 16, he wanted to go to sea. His mother said "NO!" He said "Okay, then I want to go to America." His mother agreed to this and so he came. He came with his aunt and uncle.

This photo was taken when
my Great-Grandfather
and his brothers were younger
(not sure what year).

The following is a summary of my (MMP) Great-Grandfather's translated journal. He was 17 years old when he made the journey July 31- August 12, 1908.

Friday, July 31, 1908: Arrived in Rotterdam by tram, bought a ticket and met a certain family of 12 who he had lunch with. They all boarded the steamer, New Amsterdam.

Sat, August 1: They left the harbor of Rotterdam at 3:20am. At 12 noon they saw France on one side and England on the other. At the harbor of Boulogne, France, the 2:00 bell rang for dinner (lunch) which was soup, potatoes, green beans, frightened (chopped?) meat, applesauce, cookies, coffee and apples. After leaving this harbor they didn't see anything but water until the white rocks on the coast of England. Supper (dinner) was at 7:00. It was a slice of bread, cookies, salad, potatoes and meat.

Sun, August 2: He went to a worship service (led by the father of the family he boarded the boat with). This day he was seasick. He says "The seagulls left us so we knew we were on the ocean". He attended a concert and went to his cabin but it was so hot that it was hard to get to sleep.

Mon, August 3: He awoke sweating from the heat, dressed quickly and went on deck where a man stood. The man told him about American carpenter tools and also said he'd seen 25 flying fish. My Gr.-Grampa looked for a long time but only saw one fish. After breakfast he tried to read in the beasalon(?) but it was hard because the boat was rocking so much. Later he was sitting on deck and writes, "then there came a lot of flying fish about 3 to 4 feet long. They jumped about 2 feet in the air. It was nice to see." He stayed up late because it was so warm again.

Tues, August 4: He slept late but when he got to breakfast he ate a lot. At lunch time he says "we got carrots with onion and meat, but it didn't feel so good. It was always close to my throat". He was on deck later while the ship met a sailing boat with 23 sails.

Wed, August 5: He slept well during the night. He says, "..., the boat was rocking 3 feet sideways and 12 to 15 feet from front to back. The sailors said it wasn't too bad, but we didn't like it very much." Many passengers got sick this day, but Gr-Grampa just had a horrible headache so he slept. There was another concert later.

Thurs, August 6: The weather was good and Gr-Grampa felt good.

Fri, August 7: It was very hot so he went on deck. "At 11:00 o'clock the sea grew wilder until evening when it calmed down again." He also tells about "dancing in the American way" with Uncle- in the evening.

Fri, August 8: In the morning he says "The sea is beautiful, but the sky is a little cloudy," but later on, "I experienced for the first time what an American rain is like. You can see it coming, but then you must flee inside, for you cannot stand on your feet. It did not last a long time, about 5 minutes, but long enough to get wet." Later he talks about how the boat started jumping off the waves and how strange it looked when he was standing at the back of the boat. He says, "you would see the front of the boat going deep into the sea. It seemed to sink in the ocean." Later in the evening there was more dancing. At intermission: ice cream, cookies and lemonade. On his way back to his cabin he met a man in the walkway. "I met a German, who said he was ill, but he could not stand on his feet, because he had had too much beer. The Germans use a lot of beer."
During the night the boat went very slowly. It was misty and the horn was blowing.

Sun, August 9: He says they met 2 ships, a steamer and a sailing boat yesterday. This day, after breakfast, he saw a few whales around the boat.
"At noon we had dinner and then we heard somebody shouting, 'land! land!' and really we could see America, my new country! After dinner in the evening somebody called to me to come on deck immediately. I didn't know what had happened! I jumped out the door and ran upstairs. What did I see?--- America! ---only about 400 feet away! I didn't know if I was dreaming or if it really was true what I was seeing. I can't describe it, because nobody, who has never seen a big city like New York with all its lights, can describe how it looks. I was stunned. There was a tower which looked as if it was burning. Altogether it was a beautiful sight. It was a place where only rich people can have their residence. In the winter it will not be as nice, but in the summer it is very beautiful.
At night we had to wait in front of the harbor and wait for the doctor, who had to examine our health the next morning. All were very busy. But then it was Sunday and more quiet. I liked that."

Monday, August 10: Breakfast this morning was at 6am and then at 8am he left the boat and went through customs which were "not too difficult." He and the family he'd been traveling with went to the railroad station after lunch at 1pm to catch the train but they were too late to get the next train which was leaving in 30 minutes. They had to wait for the next train, Luckywana, which left at 6:30pm. They came back to the station one and a half hours early because they were afraid of being late again. Some other Dutch people (I'm assuming were from the boat) were waiting for the same train with them. One man was going to his wife in Holland, Michigan. (For some reason - I don't understand, Gr-Grampa's uncle split up with them at this point. Gr-Grampa's aunt, another person and Gr-Grampa continued on to their destination) "In the afternoon, we went under a river (in a tunnel). It is unbelievable -- the train under the water and ships above on the river, but it is true."
He says that before leaving New York, they weighed themselves. He weighed 121 American pounds. They changed trains in Buffalo, NY at 6:30am (Tuesday). The next train, Nickelplaat, was to Chicago.

Tue, August 11: They boarded the train (Nickelplaat) just before 7am and 15 hours later, they arrived in Chicago. They were all very hungry in Chicago but didn't have the time to eat before being bused from one station to another for free. There was a thunderstorm and they got wet. The next train, he says, "left at 11:00 o'clock. They [the train staff] brought us a pillow and we could lie down to sleep. That was much better than last night. The seats could be put in another position so you could lie down. That was much better. I slept about 5 hours; the night before I had slept only 2 hours."

Wed, August 12: They all awoke very hungry so they bought pancakes and coffee on the train for $1.50. Gr-Grampa says, "...but I was happy to pay that because I was hungry as a wolf."
At 10:00am his Aunt came to find them in the smoking car to tell them they had to leave the train. "She couldn't speak English, but the conductor had given her her coat and hat for that was the only Dutch he knew. But she would not leave the train without us, so she came to warn us. We picked us our suitcases in a hurry and left this train." Their next train started in just a few minutes and passed two stations and then they changed trains again-- next was the train to Sioux City. They arrived at 4:00pm and left for Sioux Center at 8:00pm after taking care of themselves because, he says, "we were very dusty." They arrived in Sioux Center at 9:20pm. There they met Gr-Grampa's aunt's sister and her sister's husband. Nobody was there to pick up Gr-Grampa's other travel companion - which their companion thought, Gr-Grampa says, "was impossible for him to understand it, because he had sent a telegram that he would be coming home this evening. Afterwards he heard that the depot agent had forgotten to send it and still had it in his pocket." Their companion was afraid to go into his father's home when they got there(he didn't want to frighten his father who was sleeping in his chair). Gr-Grampa's Aunt's brother-in-law went in to tell him that his son was there. Their companion's brother made a "meeting" (party?) where they were welcomed with greetings and laughter by about 20 ladies and 8 young gentlemen. He slept for the first night from 12-8am at his companion's father's home. He says, "The two nights before I had slept only 6 hours in those two nights, and now it was already 12:00 o'clock midnight. So you could understand that I was a little bit lazy."
He then goes on to say, "But the Lord, who gave us such a good journey, will bless me the rest of my life." (and He did)

*see the post titled The CODE for an explanation