In Germany there are two groups of people called Barlmeyer or Bardelmeier, each concentrated within a district (German: Kreis) in Westphalia: one living around the village of Lienen in Kreis Steinfurt, the other one more eastward around Halle in Kreis Gütersloh.
Most Bardelmeier families in the USA and the Netherlands stem from people belonging to the Steinfurt-group.
Although the historical data are too scarce and fragmentary to furnish a convincing proof, it seems that all Bardelmeier families in the environment of Lienen are descended from the farmers who in the late 16th century started activity at what was then called Hof Barlage in the hamlet of Westerbeck near Lienen. During the 17th century the name Barlmeyer (sometimes Barlemejer) for the Hof and its tenants came into use, at the end of the 18th century evolving to Bardelmeier or Bardelmeyer.
From the registration of mill-obligations in 1755 it appears that three different households named Bardelmeier existed, all in the direct neighbourhood of Lienen. These three families form the foundation of the present genealogical survey.
Source: www.dckruis.nl (Dutch text).
1. The family at Bardelmeierhof
Within this family tree the farmers of Hof Bardelmeier form the backbone. The majority of the American Bardelmeiers stem from one single family in this tree.
2. The family in Lienen
This was a family of artisans, many of them with agricultural side-activities, living in the village of Lienen. One member of this family tree founded the
Dutch Bardelmeijer family tree.
3. The family in Höste
The earliest members of this family were 'Heuerlinge', living in a rented house in the hamlet of Höste near Lienen.
Apart from the three family trees there are two collections of records, that did not fit into one of the three families:
4. Three large family tree fragments
Each containing a number of generations.
5. Small family tree fragments
Each containing only one generation (parents and children), or a single entry.