Wildervank is a village in the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of

Veendam Veendam () is a town and municipality with a population of 27,752 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Veendam was established in 1648 as a peat colony by Adriaan Geerts Wildervanck. A Holland America Line cruise ship ...

, about 3 km south of the centre of Veendam itself. It was founded in 1647 by Adriaan Geerts Wildervanck as a

peat Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient ...

colony in the Wildervankster bog. Wildervank was a separate municipality until 1969, when the area was divided between Veendam and

Stadskanaal Stadskanaal () is a town and municipality with a population of 32,715 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. It was named after the canal Stadskanaal. From 1800 until 1900 this area was ideal for its peat mining, and so ...

History

The Wildervankster bog was a

raised bog Raised bogs, also called ombrotrophic bogs, are acidic, wet habitats that are poor in mineral salts and are home to flora and fauna that can cope with such extreme conditions. Raised bogs, unlike fens, are exclusively fed by precipitation (ombrot ...

located to the west of

Oude Pekela Oude Pekela ( Gronings: ''Olle Pekel''; ) is a town in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of Pekela, about 5 km southwest of Winschoten. It was established to exploit the peat in the area. During the 19th ce ...

. Adriaan Geerts settled in Oude Pekela to study the exploitation of

by the

city of Groningen Groningen (; gos, Grunn or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. The ''capital of the north'', Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of t ...

. The Wildevankster bog was still untouched, and Geerts wanted to purchase it. He bought the bog in 1647 in order to establish his own peat colony, but needed to procure a ƒ250,000 mortgage from an Amsterdam merchant. Geerts would later use the surname Wildervanck. The colony was moderately successful, however the heavy mortgage payments forced Wildervanck to sell large parts of the colony. In 1687, the church was finished in Wildervank. It was named Margaretha Hardenberg Church after the wife of Adriaan Wildervanck. The parish separated from Oude Pekela in 1702. Wildervank was originally a

linear settlement A linear settlement is a (normally small to medium-sized) settlement or group of buildings that is formed in a long line. Many of these settlements are formed along a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Others form due to physical re ...

along the canal. It would remain an independent municipality until 1969 when it merged into

except for a small part which was added to

Notable people

* Jan de Blécourt (1860–1925), Dutch olympic sports shooter *

Gerda Geertens Gerda Geertens (born 11 August 1955) is a Dutch composer. She was born in Wildervank, and studied music and philosophy in Groningen. In 1981 she began the study of composition with Klaas de Vries at the Rotterdam Conservatory. Her compositions ...

(born 1955), Dutch composer

References

External links

* {{Authority control Populated places in Groningen (province) Former municipalities of Groningen (province) Veendam 1647 establishments in the Dutch Republic