Background
William S. Hofstra was born in Michigan in 1861 to Dutch immigrant parents, Sake Hofstra and Wilhelmina Zageweg. William grew up in various cities in Michigan.
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William Hofstra
Edit Profiledirector of Price Brothers Company
Career
His family came from the province of Friesland, where an ancestor lived on an estate named "Hoflandstra," which in Frisian means "from" the "courtyard" or "farm." The name "Hoflandstra" was eventually shortened to Hofstra. In 1881, William Hofstra married Anna Laura Morton and they had two daughters, one of whom lived to adulthood. Hofstra was involved in various lumber businesses in Michigan, the Western United States and New New York
To honor his Dutch roots, William Hofstra called the estate "The Netherlands," which is now known as Hofstra Hall.
Hofstra died in 1932 and Kate died the following year. In 1935, the trustees created a branch of New York University in the former Hofstra home, and by 1963, the institution was renamed Hofstra University.
The school"s orange colors and the Hofstra seal honor the Dutch heritage of Hofstra.
