Abstract:
The people of the Dutch-American community in the twentieth century maintained a strong ethno-religious identity despite pressures to join the mainstream of the United States. This identity resulted in building and sustaining vigorous institutions of churches and schools that reinforced the shared identity. The people in these institutions created a shared identity by demanding the loyalty of members and constructing a collective memory about the past. The stories told by the members of these institutions in commemorations reflected a general framework of understanding their place in the United States through a Calvinistic theology that emphasized being a chosen people by God. However, this framework was adjusted as different internal and external dynamics pressed on the community. The events of the twentieth century required the members of the community to continually reinterpret their past in order to keep their institutions strong.

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