Beemster () is a former

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, in the province of

North Holland North Holland (, ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht (province), Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevola ...

. The Beemster is the first

polder A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrology, hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as levee, dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclamation, Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a ...

in the Netherlands reclaimed from a lake, the water extracted by windmills between 1609 and 1612. The original well-ordered landscape of fields, roads, canals, and dykes has been preserved intact. A grid of canals parallels the grid of roads in the Beemster. The larger feeder canals are offset by approximately one kilometer from the larger roads. Beemster merged into the existing municipality of

Purmerend Purmerend () is a city and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The city is surrounded by polders, such as the Purmer, Beemster and the Wormer. Purmerend's population grew relatively slowly until the 1960s ...

on 1 January 2022.

Population centres

The former municipality of Beemster contained the following small towns and villages: Gem-Beemster-OpenTopo

History

Around 800 AD the area of the modern municipality of Beemster was covered in

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

. The name "Beemster" was derived from "Bamestra", the name of a small river in the area. In the period 1150–1250 peat-digging and storm floods enlarged that small river into an inland sea, a lake connected with the Zuiderzee. Around 1605 private investors started to drain the Beemster lake. In 1610, this was almost complete, but the lake re-filled because of a breach in the Zuiderzee dikes. It was decided to make the ring-dike a meter high above the surrounding country. In 1612 the polder was dry and the land was divided among the investors. In the earlier days of the polder, farmers occupied its lands for growing the crops necessary for long sea journeys by the VOC to the East Indies. The farmland was so good that the project was considered an economic success, in contrast to, e.g., the Heerhugowaard. Since 1999 the entire Beemster

has been on the UNESCO world heritage list. The Beemster polder is home to CONO Kaasmakers, maker of the Beemster brand of cheeses. This co-op was formed in 1901 to create cheese made from milk that comes from the Beemster polder. Today Beemster Cheese is sold in Europe, as well as the U.S., Canada, Japan, and China.

World Heritage Site

Because of its historical relevance, and as the original structure of the area is still largely intact, the Beemster was added to the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

list in 1999. Justification for inclusion is as follows: * (i): The Beemster Polder is a masterpiece of creative planning, in which the ideals of antiquity and the Renaissance were applied to the design of a reclaimed landscape. * (ii): The innovative and intellectually imaginative landscape of the Beemster Polder had a profound and lasting impact on reclamation projects in Europe and beyond. * (iv): The creation of the Beemster Polder marks a major step forward in the interrelationship between humankind and water at a crucial period of social and economic expansion. In addition, in the Beemster Polder, there are five fortresses as part of the Stelling van Amsterdam, another

. The Beemster Polder combines two

World Heritage Sites World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...

Local government

The municipal council of Beemster consisted of 13 seats which at the last elections in 2018 divided as follows: The last mayor was Joyce van Beek (CDA). Elections were held in November 2021 for a council for the new merged municipality of Purmerend, that included Beemster, which commenced work in January 2022.

Notable people

Carel Fabritius - Self-Portrait - Google Art Project

Carel Fabritius Carel Pietersz. Fabritius (; bapt. 27 February 1622 – 12 October 1654) was a Dutch painter. He was a pupil of Rembrandt and worked in his studio in Amsterdam. Fabritius, who was a member of the Delft School, developed his own artistic style ...

(1622 in Middenbeemster – 1654) a Dutch painter *

Barent Fabritius Barent or Bernard Pietersz Fabritius (or Fabricius) (16 November 1624 apt.– 20 October 1673 uried, was a Dutch people, Dutch painter. Fabritius was born at Middenbeemster, North Holland, the son of . He studied with his brothers Johanne ...

(1624 in Middenbeemster - 1673) a Dutch painter * Johannes Fabritius (1636 – ca.1693) a

Dutch Golden Age The Dutch Golden Age ( ) was a period in the history of the Netherlands which roughly lasted from 1588, when the Dutch Republic was established, to 1672, when the '' Rampjaar'' occurred. During this period, Dutch trade, scientific development ...

painter * The Reverend Nanne Zwiep (1894 in Beemster – 1942 in Dachau) a pastor of the Dutch Reformed Church * Harry Droog (born 1944) a retired Dutch rower, competed at the

1968 Summer Olympics The 1968 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Mexico 1968 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 12 to 27 October 1968, in Mexico City, Mexico. These were the first Ol ...

* Erik Postma (1953 – 2002 in Middenbeemster) a Dutch politician, Mayor of Beemster from 1998

Gallery

File:Inlaatsluis nabij Zuiddijk 14 - Beemster - 20335089 - RCE.jpg, Inlet sluice near Zuiddijk 14 - Beemster File:Tuinderswoning Beemster, NOM, 05.11.jpg, Beemster gardener's house, now in the Dutch Open Air Museum File:Say cheeeeese..... (34160805296).jpg, Beemster cheese File:Inlaatsluis nabij Volgerweg 20 - Beemster - 20335090 - RCE.jpg, Inlet sluice near Volgerweg 20 - Beemster

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

* *

External links

*
Official website
Former municipalities of North Holland Polders of North Holland World Heritage Sites in the Netherlands Former lakes of the Netherlands 1612 establishments in the Dutch Republic Municipalities of the Netherlands disestablished in 2022 * {{northHolland-geo-stub