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From Belgium to Michigan

Alpena, Michigan

Story Narrative:

How did your family come to live in your town?

"My mother was born in Belgium in 1905. My grandfather always wanted to come to the U.S. So, he took the oldest son, who was 16 at the time, and they came from Canada. Then the war broke out, so my grandmother was left. There were five children, including my mother, in New Belgium. The German soldiers slept in their house. They were very kind to them, my mother said. Then they had to leave, because the front came too close. They were taken to an old castle, where they only had two rooms. My youngest uncle got typhoid fever, but my grandmother begged the doctor not to put him in the hospital, because they all died in the hospital. She was the only one that went into the other room. The other four children just stayed in one room. My grandfather finally got them to the Detroit area."

Speaker 2: "Oh, that's awesome. Are you visiting from the Detroit area now then?"

Speaker 1: "No. We live in Alpena."

Speaker 2: "Okay. That's good. Thank you."

 

Asset ID #7105

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