This is a remarkable web site called Pacific War Animated. How did the war end up in the Dutch East Indies ? With dramatic music in the background, you can follow the progression of invading Japanese forces (link below). At the bottom is a red arrow pointing to each red-framed window which you click.…
By Bianca Dias-Halpert USS Wichita (CA-45) Ship’s Chief Petty Officers listen to the radio broadcast of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s address to the Congress requesting a declaration of War against the Axis powers, circa 8 December 1941. Note phograph of President Roosevelt on the bulkhead. The Good and the Bad They’re in the same…
By Bianca Dias-Halpert, Washington, USA An article appeared in the magazine NOW! Bali August 2010 about a Dutch lady who has lived in Indonesia her entire life. They were kind enough to let me share their findings with you readers. Milly On the outside she looks Dutch but on the inside she is Indonesian. Milly…
By Robert Vanderwaall, Texas, USA This is just one of many stories my father told me of his childhood, growing up in the Dutch East Indies. He and his brother, my uncle “Om” Piet, were trying to make some money since they were recently put out on the street by their father for misbehaving. The…
By Jan Krancher The word “diaspora” has been used throughout the web site of The Indo Project. Most readers are undoubtedly acquainted with this Greek term referring to the dispersion or scattering of Jews outside of Palastine after the Babylonian exile or, to put it another way, the area outside of Palastine settled by the Jews. In that…
By Ray and Ludy van Broekhuizen The van Broekhuizen family arrived in the cold “kikkerland”, the Netherlands, in November 1957 from warm and tropical Jakarta, Indonesia. At that time, the family consisted of dad, Charles Louis van Broekhuizen, mom, Nancy Cornelia Tency (van Slooten) and five children (Roy, Ray, Ruby, Rose, and Rene). They left…
Excerpt by Kathryn Pentecost (van der Poel family) of Adelaide, South Australia On my mother’s side, I come from an enormous family of van der Poels – some of whom migrated to the Netherlands Indies in the early 1800s. The van der Poel clan dates back before 1600; some members of the family migrated from Holland:…
BDH: Where were you born ? JK: I was born in the beautiful tourist town of Malang, in East Java, the former Dutch East Indies, prior to the Japanese invasion. After struggle for independence, the country became known as Indonesia and the Dutch were expelled. BDH: How did you emigrate ? JK: As a 17-year…
As told by Carol Norwood of Pennsylvania, USA The photo from the home page slideshow is of Carol Norwood’s mother named Cita at the age of 2 in January of 1930. They were walking with their baboe (nanny) with mother and baby. Carol’s German grandfather worked for a Dutch company by the name of Senembah…
By Bianca Dias-Halpert, Washington, USA Several years ago I received a big envelope with old family photos from a tante (aunt) in Holland. She had been researching our family geneology and heard that I was interested. I never knew this tante until we met in 2005. All the children in this picture are first…