“Dutch Migration to Tasmania in 1950: Motivation, Intention and Assimilation” is a thesis by Kees Wierenga, submitted in October 2005 for a Bachelor of Arts with Honours in History at the University of Tasmania. The study delves into the experiences of Dutch migrants who relocated to Tasmania in 1950, focusing on their motivations for emigrating, their intentions upon arrival, and their efforts toward assimilation.
Central to the thesis is an examination of a group referred to as the “Groningen Seven” (G7), comprising seven men from Groningen, Netherlands, along with their families. These individuals were: Barteld Jan Folkerts, Fokke Haan, Eerke Jacob van der Laan, Pieter Laning, Egbert Pinkster, Jan Thomas Steen, and Jan de Vries. Their professions ranged from painters and manufacturers to municipal officials and shopkeepers. The thesis explores their collective and individual reasons for migrating, the expectations they held about their new lives in Tasmania, and the strategies they employed to integrate into Australian society.
The study provides a nuanced understanding of the Dutch migrant experience in mid-20th century Tasmania, shedding light on the broader themes of post-war migration, cultural adaptation, and community formation.
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Related research – The Groningen Seven and Little Groningen
Kees Wierenga’s 2005 thesis provides the historical foundation for understanding the organised migration of the Groningen Seven to Tasmania in 1950. It examines their reasons for emigrating, the establishment of their cooperative building enterprise and their experiences of settlement and assimilation.
The Dutch Australian Cultural Centre has developed a collection of related articles based on Wierenga’s research, including biographies of the original migrants, the history of the Australian Building Corporation, and the establishment of Little Groningen at Kingston.
These articles, together with further family histories, archival documents and research on Dutch communities across Tasmania, are brought together in the Research Portal – Little Groningen: Dutch migration, faith and community in Kingston, Tasmania.
The DACC acknowledges Kees and Irene Wierenga for their contribution to preserving this historical material and making it publicly accessible.
