26 December 1878 - January 1879. Borinage region. Activities as a lay preacher amongst the coal miners. Lives consecutively at Pâturages, 39 Rue de l'Eglise boarding at pedlar Van der Haegen's house. This house does no longer exist.

January 1879 - August 1879. Wasmes, 221 Rue du Petit-Wasmes, at the boarding house of baker Denis; preaches at 257 Rue du Bois at the protestant center 'Salon de Bebé'; lives there in extreme poverty in a small hut. After being fired he walks to Brussels in August 1879 visiting rev. Pietersen. From there he walked to parish priest Frank in Cuesmes in the Borinage region.

August 1879 - 15 October 1880. Cuesmes, 8 Rue du Grand Marais. Moves to 8 Rue du Pavillon, in miner Decrucq's boarding house. This house, 'Maison du Marais', now houses a permanent exhibition.

Taken from the book "Pilgrimage through life, Travelling in the footsteps of Vincent van Gogh", written by Kees Kaldenbach & Michel Didier, Amsterdam 1990. Also published in the same year in Dutch as "Pelgrimstocht door het Leven, Reizen in de voetsporen van Vincent van Gogh".