Affectionately known as “Dickie the Druggist,” Van Bree was a pharmacist, merchandiser and landlord. His first drug store was located in a two-story building near the southwest corner of Main Avenue and present-day S. Elm Street.
In 1878, at age 44, Den Herder opened a bank in Zeeland. In 1880, he was elected to the office of elder in his church, First Reformed Church in Zeeland. It wasn’t his first time.