What happens when (distant) cousins fall in love and want to get married? Canon law says they need marriage dispensation. Let us take a look at an example of a couple that lived in Roermond, Limburg, in the 18th century. Transcription 27 februarii habita mea Licentia Contraxerunt matrimonium Cum dispensatione in tertio et quarto mixto Read more…
Two days ago we saw a post online about a book that Nicolaas Lakeman wrote in 1653. The author believed she was a descendant of this doctor, who lived in Amsterdam. We were curious and asked her for more details. “I was tracing back my paternal grandmother’s line and was curious about the surname ‘Lakeman’ Read more…
Civil records are one of the most reliable sources. That is what we teach beginning genealogists in the Netherlands. In general, that statement is correct. Nevertheless, civil registrars were and are human beings and we all make mistakes. What if a name in a birth record was wrong? Translation The original record shows the birth Read more…