Jan Hendrik te Selle (1838-1921) was born on the “De Selle” farm, near Winterswijk, Netherlands. He was one of the seven sons of Jan Albert te Selle (1800-1845) and Dela ten Damme (1802-1883). Jan Hendrik and a younger brother, Harmen Jan te Selle (1844-1919), emigrated to the United States in 1865. At first, they lived with their aunt and uncle, Gerrit Bloemers and Janna te Selle Bloemers, near Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Within two years the brothers moved from Wisconsin to Lancaster County, Nebraska, where they homesteaded farmland, raised their families, and remained for the rest of their lives.
Jan Hendrik married Johanna (Hanna) Berendina Onnink (1841-1929) on September 28, 1865, just days before they departed for America along with Jan Hendrik’s brother, Harmen Jan. Jan Hendrik and Johanna Onnink had eight children that lived into adulthood. These children, and their eventual spouses, are listed below:
- Janna Geertruida TeSelle (1866-1946) [Spouse: David DeBoer (1862-1939)]
- Jan Willem (John William) TeSelle (1867-1945) [Spouses: (1) Geertje VanderBeek (1871-1922); (2) Jeanette W. Bogaard (1884-1973)]
- Dela (“Dillie”) TeSelle (1869-1971) [Spouses: (1) Gerrit William ten Hulzen (1864-1912); (2) Henry J. Wubbels (1854-1943)]
- Miena TeSelle (1872-1872)
- Jan Albert TeSelle (1873-1954) [Spouse: Johanna Walvoord (1878-1965)]
- Hendrik (“Henry”) TeSelle (1875-1960) [Spouse: Martha Wismer (1877-1955)]
- Gerrit TeSelle (1878-1948) [Spouse: Jennie Wismer (1878-1964)]
- Hanna Gesiena “Jessena” TeSelle (1880-1944) [Spouse: Richard Thomas Liesveld (1879-1956)
- Miena Berendina (“Dina”) TeSelle (1881-1893)
- Benjamin Hendrik TeSelle (1884-1971) [Spouse: Johanna G. Lefferdink (1884-1980)]
The bold surnames above are for spouses of the TeSelle women. These surnames may be associated with some of Jan Hendrik te Selle descendants, so watch for those names in your genealogy records. When you follow the links above to visit the Profile pages of Jan Hendrik’s children, you will see that we do not yet have a lot of information about most of them. We hope that you, the reader, will be able to provide us with some history and memorabilia about one or more of these TeSelle ancestors. In addition to the Profile pages, please follow the links to the Jan Hendrik te Selle family Gallery and to other Related Content listed below.
Jan Hendrik te Selle died on March 13, 1921, in Firth, Lancaster County, Nebraska. He is buried in Holland Cemetery, Holland, Lancaster County, Nebraska, along with his two immigrant brothers and their spouses.
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