Emigrants from Aalten to the US
In the 19th century, thousands of Achterhoekers emigrated to the United States in search of land, freedom and new opportunities. Among them was the Ruesink family from Lintelo. They were among the early European pioneers who settled in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin.
The Ruesink family lived on the Akkermaat farm in the rural district of Lintelo near Aalten. The family consisted of father Jan Willem Ruesink, mother Grada Christina Rensink, four sons (one of whom died shortly after birth) and three daughters.
The family emigrated to America in 1855. They left Rotterdam on August 2 on a ship and arrived in New York after 42 days. They traveled on to Milwaukee, where Jan Willem Ruesink worked for more than two years as a foreman in a lime kiln, with a wage of one dollar a day, later increased to $1.25.
In the US, the Ruesink couple had another son and two daughters.
Establishment in Holland Township
In the spring of 1857 the family settled in Holland Township, on the farm of D.A. Walvoord. Jan Willem worked there for more than two and a half years, mainly cutting wood for transport via the pier of Amsterdam (Wisconsin). He then bought 10 acres (4 ha) of land for $200, and added another 10 acres six years later for $150. In 1882, he retired from working life and moved to Gibbsville, where he enjoyed his old age.
Jan Willem Ruesink was considered one of the hardest working immigrants in Sheboygan County. It is estimated that he cut about 2800 “cords” of wood (more than 10,000 m³) in his lifetime, for which he received between 32 and 75 cents per cord.
From farmhand to shopkeeper
Son Evert Ruesink, born on August 17, 1852 in Lintelo, arrived with his family in Holland Township at the age of five. He would live there for the rest of his life. At the age of fourteen he started working as a servant for Harmen Jan te Selle (1844-1919), a farmer in Holland Township, where he stayed for two years. He then worked for six years in Fond du Lac County.
By living frugally, he had saved $800. With those savings, Evert started a shop in Gibbsville. After about eight years, he sold the business and switched to horticulture, a business he ran for five years. In the autumn of 1887 he took over Henry Merion’s company in Oostburg, where he continued his entrepreneurship.
Evert married on December 11, 1878 in Holland, Sheboygan, with Janna (“Jane”) Heinen, daughter of Gradus Heinen and Willemina Wisselink. Janna was born on April 19, 1858 in Holland Township. The couple had five children.
Community and death
Evert Ruesink was considered a self-made man: he started as a day laborer and worked his way up with diligence, perseverance and thrift to become a respected entrepreneur in Sheboygan County. Evert and Jane were members of the Dutch Reformed Church, and politically, Evert, like his father, was a supporter of the Republican Party.
Evert Ruesink died in 1898, only 45 years old. Jane followed him to the afterlife almost a year and a half later. Both were buried at Union Cemetery in Oostburg, Sheboygan County.
