Leonard Roelvink, LL.M.

Mayor (1861–1886)

Leonard Roelvink was born on 30 April 1833, the son of Arnoldus Florentinus Roelvink, Mayor of Aalten, and Elzabé Maria Theodora ten Cate. On 14 November 1870, he married Christina Paschen in Winterswijk, where she had been born on 27 March 1848.

In 1857, Roelvink published his legal dissertation under the title Theses juridicae inaugurales with the publishing house Post Uiterweer in Utrecht. Four years later, in 1861, he succeeded his father as Mayor of the municipality of Aalten.

Roelvink lived in the villa at ’t Zand in Bredevoort, which is known today as Sint Bernardus. Every day, he travelled to Aalten by carriage, just as his father had done before him. He was fiercely opposed to the arrival of the railway line to Aalten, fearing that his horses would be startled by the “steaming train monster”.

Leonard Roelvink passed away from a stroke on 3 March 1886. The municipal council was just about to meet and was waiting for the arrival of its chairman when a doctor came to break the sad news of his passing. He was buried at the old cemetery on Prins Mauritsstraat in Bredevoort.

Following his death, six prominent residents of Aalten addressed a letter to the Minister of the Interior. They took the opportunity to express their concerns regarding what they considered to be administrative malpractice within the municipality, which they attributed to the policies—or lack thereof—of the deceased mayor. In their letter, they explicitly stated that they did not wish to influence the appointment of a new mayor, but at the same time indicated that, in their view, “the dismal state of affairs” in Aalten was partly due to the fact that the office had passed from father to son. Among other things, they complained of deficient education, poor roads, excessive alcohol consumption, and unlawful child labour. The six men pleaded for the appointment of a strong successor who could restore order. Their grievances were taken seriously by both the Minister and the King’s Commissioner.

Roelvink was succeeded as Mayor of Aalten by Johan Hora Adema.