David W. Voorhees   [1947]

Academic/Scholar


David William Voorhees is and has been an exemplary contributor to the various organizations involved in the production and distribution of the history of the Dutch in America, from the early settlers in New Netherland to the contributors to its history at present.

David William Voorhees is a documentary editor and historian. His life’s work has been devoted to the study of the former New Netherland region following the English takeover in 1664. He is currently serving in several leadership positions. These include: 

Director of the Jacob Leisler Institute for the Study of the Early New York History in the City of Hudson, NY,
Editorial Director of the Papers of Jacob Leisler, a National Historical Publications and Records Commission Project,
Managing director of the Halve Maen, a quarterly journal devoted to New Netherland Studies published by the Holland Society of New York.
Formerly he was the Managing Reference History Editor at Charles Scribner and Sons, and a Co-Editor of the Papers of William Livingston.

His published works include:
“The Concise Dictionary of American History”, 1983.
“The Holland Society: A Centennial History 1885-1985”, 1985
“Translations of the Records of the Reformed Protestant Church of Flatbush, Kings County, New York”, Volume I 1677-1720, 1998, and Volume II, “Deacons’ Accounts, 1654-1709”, 2009.
Numerous articles on the Dutch colonial period in America.

Voorhees was born on September 20, 1947. His paternal ancestors came from Drenthe, the Netherlands in the seventeenth century. He lived in Haddonfield, NJ until he was eight, when his family moved to Princeton. His father instilled in him a love of history, with frequent vacations in to Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

Voorhees graduated from Princeton High School and then attended Newberry College in South Carolina. In 1968 he lived in Amsterdam for a year, and that stay provoked his curiosity in the Dutch colonial period in America. It apparently also provoked an interest in more serious academic studies and he enrolled at New York University from which he received five degrees culminating in a Ph. D. in history in 1988.

During his career he has been involved in a number of other Dutch American history-related studies. Among others were:
1. Consultant for the “Amsterdam/New Amsterdam: The World of Henry Hudson”. An exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York in 2009.
2. Consultant to the “Dutch New York between East and West: The World of Margrieta van Varick”. An exhibit at the Bard Graduate Center in Manhattan in 2010.
3. Co-editor of special New Netherland issue of “New York History” in Fall 2008.

Voorhees also participated in a number of other history-related activities among which are:
1. A member of Editorial Board of “Columbia County History and Heritage”.
2. A member of the City of Hudson’s [NY] Historic Preservation Commission.
3. A board member of the “Friends of the First Presbyterian Church of Hudson.
4. A consultant to “Historic Hudson”, for which he helped produce the city’s walking tours.

In conclusion, we must congratulate him for his receipt of one of the highest royal awards, Knight in the Order of Orange Nassau, in April 2010 from HRH Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. This award is not given lightly. It is only bestowed on people who have given major contributions to the Netherlands in terms of history, society, charity and other services honoring the people of the Netherlands. His work to publicize the contributions made by the Dutch during the colonial period need to be recognized by all.

 

E-BOOKS AVAILABLE FROM AMAZON; GOOGLE: Kindle Store Pegels

 

PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICANS, CURRENT AND HISTORIC

EIGHT PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICAN FAMILIES: THE ROOSEVELTS, VANDERBILTS AND OTHERS, 2015

FIFTEEN PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICAN FAMILIES: THE VAN BURENS, KOCH BROTHERS, VOORHEES AND OTHERS, 2015

PROMINENT DUTCH AMERICANS IN U.S. GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP POSITIONS, 2015

 

DUTCH PEGELS INVOLVED IN WARS

ALLIED EUROPE CAMPAIGN—1944/1945: TACTICAL MISTAKES, 2017

THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN THE NETHERLANDS: MEMOIRS, 2017

FRENCH REVOLUTION, NAPOLEON AND RUSSIAN WAR OF 1812, 2015


About the New Netherland Institute

For over three decades, NNI has helped cast light on America's Dutch roots. In 2010, it partnered with the New York State Office of Cultural Education to establish the New Netherland Research Center, with matching funds from the State of the Netherlands. NNI is registered as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. More

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Housed in the New York State Library, the NNRC offers students, educators, scholars and researchers a vast collection of early documents and reference works on America's Dutch era. More

 

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