Tag: Chicago

Churches and Migrations in Chicago

Churches and Migrations in Chicago

For the past half year, I’ve been doing re-photography posts on Heritage Hall’s Facebook site. Usually it is two pictures, one from the deeper past and a more recent image, sometimes a photograph I’ve taken. Some of the posts include a story about the congregation, 

The Strange Story of the Professor and the Dutch Chair

The Strange Story of the Professor and the Dutch Chair

During the early spring of 1911, leading Dutch Reformed folk in Chicago and Michigan were fighting about a professor. The issue was not, as you might think, unorthodox theology or dangerous ideas. It was who should be the new professor of Dutch history, language, and 

The Dutch Teamster and the Mob

The Dutch Teamster and the Mob

In my previous blogpost, “The Minister and the Mob,” I wrote about the struggles of a man leading a congregation against evil in the world. This post is a distinct but related story about a man standing up for his beliefs and what he knew 

The Minister and the Mob

The Minister and the Mob

In the face of evil, it can be hard to take a stand. Reverend Edward J. Masselink was one of those who did. He mobilized his church to stand up to the Chicago mob. Edward Masselink graduated from Princeton Seminary and received his Th.D. from 

Klaas Niemeijer and the Dutch in Chicago

Klaas Niemeijer and the Dutch in Chicago

Klaas Niemeijer’s life was typical for an immigrant, and yet quite unique. He was a man on the move, first back home in Europe and then in his new home in America. Niemeijer moved to Germany around 1900  to work in a coal mine and