After dinner, Grandpa sat with me on the couch and showed me a few old schoolbooks of his from his grade school years at the Savornin Lohman-School. Grandpa was quite an organized kid; he says he covered all of his schoolbooks and numbered them himself. I can see neatly-written numbers written in ink on the spine of both of these books. It's no wonder he liked accounting and inventory work!
The first book we examined was Prins Willem: Vader des Vaderlands ("Prince William: Father of our Country"), written by W.G. van de Hulst. Apparently this author was a very religious and patriotic gentleman; he incorporated many religious ideas and references as he described the life of Prince William of Orange (who eventually became King William III of Orange). Basically, this book was a class reader for Grandpa's Dutch history class.
Above is a school newsletter. The date reads 15 januari 1936. Ons Schoolblad: Uitgave der Vereeniging voor Christelijk Volksonderwijs te Feyenoord en Hilleslius.
A photo of the principal of the school. Grandpa notes his stiff collar, which M. Willemsen was known to wear daily. Willemsen was a well-known and admired man, and many of the school's professors considered him a good friend and fatherlike mentor. Grandpa admits that if you misbehaved, your teacher or the principal could punish you in the form of a beating. Wow, times certainly have changed! More photos to come.bisous. groetjes.
