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WEBSITE
The material on this page is just a fraction of all
the data I have. The research to obtain a proper genealogical survey was carried out by Albert J Elen (whose mother is a Hulswit)
and myself, aided by some other relatives. I intend to publish a special website, devoted to the Hulswit family tree, including information
on my other ancestors. I'll put up a link to that site on this page. I hope I'll be able to go online with this in the near
future, so keep checking this page!
Meanwhile, I have started a Hulswit Family website, which gives some brief information on my own ancestry, as well as a number of photos of family members.
JAN HULSWIT
There are basically two branches in the
family: the"Amsterdam branch" and the "Rotterdam branch". (I'm in the latter.)
The most notable member of the Amsterdam branch is the painter Jan
Hulswit (baptised Amsterdam 11 April 1766, d. Amsterdam 8 August 1822). Even though he didn't take up painting until later
in life, he was quite successful in his lifetime and sold two pieces to Dutch King Willem I. The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam owns
two of his paintings (see below).
The art historian Albert J Elen (now a
curator at the Boymans van Beuningen Museum, Rotterdam) wrote an essay on Jan Hulswit. Since Jan painted in the 17th-century
Dutch style, he believes there are a number of paintings which are now believed to date back to the 17th century, but are
in fact Jan's work.
| A drawing by Jan Hulswit |
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| Dilapidated buildings along a canal |
An acquaintance who likes to visit auctions
told me the drawing below, done in ink and pencil, was for sale in Haarlem. So I asked him to buy it for me in February 2007.
This means I've got a real Hulswit now!
DUTCH ART DATABASE
| Painting by Jan Hulswit |
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| Landscape in the Gooi district: Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
| Painting by Jan Hulswit |
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| City Gate: Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
LODEWIJK HULSWIT
JOHANNES HULSWIT
My grandfather Johannes (b. Rotterdam
24 May 1901, d. Nijmegen 4 January 1969) ended up in Oosterbeek near Arnhem after he and his siblings had been taken away
from their parents' custody in 1907. He stayed with the Van Veelens together with his brother Piet. He became a carpenter
and was active in the Builders' Trade Union. He married my grandmother (Geertruijda Hendrika Dolfing, b. Ravenstein 1 June
1904, d. Nijmegen 17 September 1989) on 21 January 1926. She was a rural constable's daughter. My grandparents had four children:
my dad is the eldest.
My granddad had a serious accident
in 1952 when he fell down 13 meters from scaffolding on a building site. He survived, but never worked again. I remember
him as an old man sitting in his chair smoking cigars. He suffered a lot from headaches.
| My Hulswit grandparents |
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| Johannes Hulswit and Geertruijda Dolfing, about 1925 |
MART HULSWIT
Mart Hulswit is a direct descendant of the
painter Jan Hulswit. His father worked for Shell and Mart and his brother Fred settled in the US. Mart used to be an actor,
and now works for the Episcopal Actors' Guild.
I met Mart when I was in NYC in
1990 and spent a nice evening at his Manhattan home. The next day we met again in Central Park.
| New York City, 14 July 1990 |
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| Mart Hulswit and myself in Central Park |
MARK AND JAN HULSWIT
In February 2007 Ruben and I went to Pennsylvania
to see Inge, who's spending her freshman year at Elizabethtown College there. I had already been in contact with Mark Hulswit,
who lives in Boyerstown, not too far from Philadelphia. So. on 17 February, Inge, Ruben and I went to see him and his family.
His brother Jan also turned up. THey are Fred Hulswit's sons, and so Mart's nephews. We had a great time and a great meal!
REKERS: MY MOTHER'S SIDE
Below are my great-grandparents Herman Rekers
(Enschede 1854 - Enschede 1926) and Theodora ter Weer (Enschede 1851 - Enschede 1920). He was a decorator and a fireman. Their
youngest son Gerrit Johan (Enschede 1888 - Amersfoort 1990) was my mum's dad and so my granddad. He married Berendina Lodder
(Baarn 1891 - Amersfoort 1986), who was one of the first female local-council members in this country before the war. They
were both active members of the SDAP, the Dutch Social Democrats, and my grandmother helped found the housemaids' trade union.
My granddad was a carpenter and a furniture maker: I still own some of his pieces.
| My great-grandparents |
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| Herman Rekers and Theodora ter Weer, 1902 |
| My Rekers grandparents |
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| Berendina Lodder and Gerrit Rekers on their engagement: they got married in 1920 |
The two photos below were taken in Amersfoort in
the 1970s. My grandparents were well into their eighties and living in "De Liendert", which was (and indeed still is) a home
for the elderly.
| Berendina (Dientje) Lodder |
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More to come...
I plan to put up some more photos of my grandparents, great-grandparents,
and other relatives on a new site: the Hulswit Family Site.
SOME LINKS TO OTHER HULSWITS
|
 Lodder)