The Walloons in the U.S.A.

Jean Ducat, Dominique Tombeur, Thierry Eggerickx

"During its history, Wallonia never experienced migratory movements comparable in number to the Anglo-Saxon, Germanic or Latin emigrations. However, from 1830 to the dawn of the XXth century, several tens of thousands of Walloons (some put the figure at 90,000) emigrated to the United States and participated in the expansion of the Midwest and the industrialization of the Northeast. Two centuries before, some of them -- mostly coming from Hainault -- contributed to the foundation of New York. This brochure will stress the important role played by some missionaries in the christianization of the United States, the orientation of the emigrants, the creation of towns or villages, etc., and the fact that Flemings accompanied their Walloon neighbors to the United States and played a similar role there" -- (p. 3.)