Leiden University Libraries Digital Collections

François Haverschmidt was born in 1835 as the son of the Leeuwarden pharmacist and wine merchant Nicolaas Theodorus HaverSchmidt and his wife Geeske Bekius. He studied theology in Leiden from 1852 to 1858 and after his studies he became a preacher in Foudgum and Raard (1859-1862), later in Den Helder (1862-1864) and finally in Schiedam (1864-1894). In addition to being a pastor, Haverschmidt was also a poet and writer and published his poetry under the name Piet Paaltjens. Haverschmidt made his debut in the Leidse Studenten-Almanak (1856-1859). His most famous works are Snikken en grimlachjes (1867) and Familie en kennissen (1876). Haverschmidt was a melancholic man and knew many depressive periods. In 1894 he committed suicide.
In 1930-1931 the collection was largely donated by the heirs to the Society of Dutch Literature. Another part comes from the legacy of Johannes Dyserinck (1912), which was already included in the collection. A supplement was purchased in 1991.