Historians to unpack forgotten Dutch roots of early America
Long before Michigan became a hub for 19th-century Dutch settlement, Dutch ideas, trade networks, and revolutionary politics were actively shaping the trajectory of colonial America.
HOLLAND — Long before Michigan became a hub for 19th-century Dutch settlement, Dutch ideas, trade networks, and revolutionary politics were actively shaping the trajectory of colonial America.
On Saturday, Nov. 21, the Holland Museum will host two leading historians to examine that broader foundation in a special public symposium titled "The Dutch-American Connection: Culture, Politics and the Founding of the United States."
The morning event runs from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Winants Auditorium at Graves Hall on the Hope College campus. Co-presented by the Holland Museum, Hope College’s A.C. Van Raalte Institute, and the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Chicago, the program gathers local, scholarly, and international partners to explore how transatlantic relationships influenced early American identity.
From New Amsterdam to the revolution
Headlining the program is Russell Shorto, senior scholar at the New Netherland Institute and director of the New Amsterdam Project at the New-York Historical Society.
Shorto, author of The Island at the Center of the World and Taking Manhattan: The Extraordinary Events That Created New York and Shaped America, will present on how the 17th-century Dutch colony of New Netherland established enduring traditions of pluralism, free trade, and cultural diversity that survived long after English rule took hold in 1664.
Joining Shorto is Matthijs Tieleman, an assistant professor of early American history at Illinois State University. Tieleman’s presentation, "Patriots in the Atlantic World: The Dutch and the American Revolution," focuses on the 18th-century ideological and economic ties between American revolutionaries and their counterparts in the Netherlands.
Tieleman will also offer a preview of his forthcoming book, The Patriot Atlantic: How the Americans, Dutch, and Irish Forged the Age of Revolution, set for publication in May 2027 by the University of Virginia Press.
“The Dutch-American connection extends far beyond our local Dutch heritage,” said Michelle Stempien, executive director of the Holland Museum. “This program gives us an opportunity to look more deeply at how Dutch ideas, communities and transatlantic relationships became part of the broader American story.”
Phil Tanis, director of the Van Raalte Institute, emphasized that the early influence of Dutch immigrants on the nation's founding remains largely underappreciated. Following the individual presentations, Tanis will moderate a group discussion and Q&A session with the audience.
Event schedule, registration
The symposium opens at 9:30 a.m. with check-in, coffee, and light breakfast items, giving attendees time to meet before formal presentations begin. The morning concludes with a book signing by Shorto, with copies of his works available for purchase.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to pre-order Tieleman’s upcoming book.
- When: 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 21
- Where: Winants Auditorium, Graves Hall, Hope College, 263 College Ave.
- Cost: $10 for Holland Museum members; $20 for nonmembers
- Registration: Pre-registration is available at hollandmuseum.org.
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