Holland was founded in when Albertus C Van Raalte led a group of 60 from the city of Rotterdam in

The Netherlands to America in search of religious freedom and economic relief. After landing in New
York, the intended destination was Wisconsin but winter came early in the all of 1846, causing the
group to winter in Detroit.

While in Detroit, VanRaalte heard of land available on the west side of Michigan. Scouting ahead of
his followers, VanRaalte arrived on the shores of Black Lake (later renamed Lake Macatawa) on
January 1, 1847. The rest of his group began arriving on February 9.

However, these early settlers did not find the promise land. Instead they found a swamps and forests.
Trees were felled to build log sheds. And while food was scarce, the settles perservered. Vab Raalte
realized the forest could provide

Realizing the potential Lake Michigan could play in exporting trees cut from the forest, the decision
was made to link Lake Michigan with Lake Macatawa. The two were separated by sand dunes. At first
help from the United States government was sought. When the request was turned down, Van Raalte
and his group broke out the shovels and dug a channel by hand.

Hope College was founded when VanRaalte donated a tract of land for an institute of higher learning.
The Pioneer School opened in 1851 and was later renamed Holland Academy. The name Hope College
debuted