Harmen Jan te Selle (1839-1916) turned out to be quite an itinerant immigrant during his life in the United States. Harmen Jan arrived first in Wisconsin in 1866, moved to Iowa in 1878, and finally settled in Montana from 1891 until his death in 1916. We know very little about his life and activities in… Read more »
Derk Willem te Selle (1827-1904) was born on the “De Selle” farm, near Winterswijk, Netherlands. He was the oldest son of Jan Albert te Selle (1800-1845) and Dela ten Damme (1802-1883). In 1861 Derk Willem moved to farm “Fökkink” in Kotten, along with his wife, mother Dela, his young sons, and his three younger brothers — Jan Hendrik, Gerrit Jan, and Harmen Jan. Derk Willem remained at Fökkink for the rest of his life, while his three younger brothers emigrated to America in the mid-1860’s. There are numerous letters in this website between Derk Willem at Fökkink and this three brothers in Nebraska.
Why did so many Dutch farmers decide to emigrate to America in the mid-1800’s? What would inspire two young farm boys in 1865 to leave their friends and family in rural Winterswijk, Netherlands, in order to undertake an uncertain venture across the Atlantic Ocean to an unknown future in America? Read about the powerful cultural and economic forces that motivated our ancestors to seek their future prosperity in a far away land across the sea.
Dela ten Damme te Selle was not a te Selle by birth, but rather by her marriage to Jan Albert te Selle (1800-1845).
Harmen Jan te Selle (1844-1919) was born on the “De Selle” farm, near Winterswijk, Netherlands. He and brother Jan Hendrik te Selle (1838-1921) emigrated to Wisconsin in 1865, where they lived with their Aunt Janna and Uncle Gerrit Bloemers. Within a few years the brothers moved from Wisconsin to Lancaster County, Nebraska, where they homesteaded farm land, raised their families, and remained for the rest of their lives.
Janna te Selle was the sister-in-law of Dela ten Damme te Selle, mother of Jan Hendrik and Harmen Jan te Selle, the first of the te Selle brothers to emigrate from the Fökkink farm to the United States.
