An American Family History

Immigrants from Seraing, Belgium to Braidwood, Illinois

Seraing is a city in the Walloon or French speaking, southern Province of Liege, Belgium in the valley of Meuse river across which is the coal-mining area of Jemeppe-sur-Meuse. This location allowed Seraing to become an important industrial center during the Industrial Revolution. It was known for its iron works and glass works.

In 1864, a farmer digging for water found coal in what is now Braidwood, Will County, Illinois. A town quickly formed which was called Keeversville, The Grove. On March 4, 1873, the city was incorporated and named for James Braidwood, the supervisor of the first deep shaft.

Many miners were needed and they arrived from other parts of America, especially West Virginia and Europe including from Seraing, Beligum.

Illinois became a state in 1818. A large influx of American settlers came in the 1810s by the Ohio River.

Name		Born	Immigrated
Bertram, Gille		1824	1870
Bertram, James &
Bertrand, Francois & Catherine Hocquette		1833	1870
Blockyou,
Coclet, Joseph A.		1843	abt 1872
Decerf, Francois		1854	about 1882
Hortekam, Francois & Angelique	miner	1833	1882 SS Zeeland
Kinkin, Alexis and Marguerite Decerf		1851	1880

MaKiney, William or Maquinay, Guillaume & Francoise Denise Decerf and marguerite Decerf	miner	1853	1882 Bergenland
Moreau, Henri & Louis	miner	1846	1882 SS Zeeland
Naillieux, Joseph and Mary Jennifer Bertram		1859
Naillieux, Simeon and Ernestine Bertram		1866
Yerly, John		1842

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H O M E	Colonial Maryland	Colonial New England	Colonial Virginia & North Carolina	Colonial Virginia & West Virginia	Quakers & Mennonites	New Jersey Baptists
German Lutherans	Ontario Settlers	Ohio Pioneers	Watauga Settlement	Pennsylvania Pioneers	Midwest Pioneers	Californians	Jewish Immigrants

©Roberta Tuller 2023
tuller.roberta@gmail.com
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