The genealogical narrative, Van Buskirks of Indiana – Western Migration from New Netherlands, 11 Generations -1654-2017 delves behind the genealogical charts and tables to provide unusual insight into the lives and struggles of one of the founding families of colonial America. The chapters depict each generation in its settlement, over three centuries, across the North American continent. The book concerns the progressive migration of the author’s family branch from its origin in Holstein, Denmark and its emigration through 17th century Amsterdam to New Netherlands in 1654. They describe the Van Buskirk colonization in the Dutch Hudson Valley and it subsequent progressive migration west through colonial Pennsylvania, post revolutionary war Northwest Territories, a multigenerational stint in Indiana before arriving in the Oregon Country of the Pacific Northwest.
Van Buskirk discusses the first two generations in some detail, including origin of the surname and details about the original patriarch, Laurens Andriessen Van Buskirk and his four sons. The later chapters concentrate on his own direct ancestral line but also include additional discussions about more distant cousins of unusual interest. These range from the tragic intra-familial conflicts of diverse political loyalty and an Indiana Regiment of giants to pioneer toils on the Oregon Trail and body snatching for medical dissection. The author strives to present a readable and interesting tale built upon verifiable genealogical and historical documents.