Olst-Wijhe
Encyclopedia
Olst-Wijhe is a municipality
in the province
of Overijssel
, eastern Netherlands
. It borders the Overijssel municipalities of Zwolle
to the north, Raalte
to the north and east and Deventer
to the south; and the Gelderland
municipalities of Voorst
, Epe
and Heerde
to the west.
s in 947 (as "Holsto"), Wijhe in 960 (as "Wie"). Traditionally, agriculture
(fruit
and cereal
s), cattle
, meat
processing and the production of brick
s in open-air brickworks
along river IJssel
were the prime sources of income in the area.
Nowadays, Olst and Wijhe are mainly commuter residences for people working in Deventer
and Zwolle
respectively; both towns have had a railroad station on the Zwolle
–Nijmegen main line (route 3600) since 1866. The surrounding land still relies heavily on agriculture
. There is some small industry
in Olst (machinery manufacturing) and Wijhe (meat processing).
Although the town of Wijhe
has more inhabitants than the town of Olst
, the latter was chosen to be the formal seat of the municipality as the former municipality of Olst was larger in both area and population than the former municipality of Wijhe. Because of sensitive feelings concerning the merger, particularly in Wijhe, this fact is downplayed and municipal services are spread over both main towns.
, which flows through it and in some parts forms the border between the provinces Overijssel and Gelderland. Although this border largely runs along river IJssel, there are two left-bank exclaves opposite the towns of Olst and Wijhe, in which the villages of Welsum and Welsumerveld (south exclave) and Marle (north exclave) are situated. There are cable ferries
between Olst and Welsum and between Wijhe and Vorchten in the municipality of Heerde
(there is no direct connection between Marle and the rest of Overijssel).
Olst-Wijhe is part of the low-lying Salland
region. The one metre above mean sea level contour line
runs roughly parallel to the river; the municipality's interior is characterised by flat or gently rolling grasslands and woodlands at about 10–15 metres above mean sea level.
Apart from river IJssel, several more streams flow through the municipality's territory. They are called wetering ("drainage waterway") and are amalgamations of natural streams gradually channelised from the 18th century onwards and specifically dug canals
. From west to east, these are Zandwetering, Soestwetering, Groote Vloedgraven, Oude Wetering and Nieuwe Wetering. All these streams flow in a south-north direction and come together at one point or other to eventually form the Zwarte Water
river near the city of Zwolle
. On the left side of river IJssel, near the exclave of Welsum, there are several more wetering streams, all but one of them on the Gelderland side of the border; the exception being the easternmost of these, the Terwoldsche Wetering, which forms the border between Olst-Wijhe and Voorst.
s and hamlet
s (2009 population
figures with difference from 2007 figures): Boerhaar (732, +10), Boskamp (1091, -51), Den Nul (568, +20), Duur (189, +6), Eikelhof and Overwetering (295, -14), Elshof (473, +26), Fortmond (104, -3), Hengforden (456, +37), Herxen (320, +4), Marle (76, +2), Middel (213, +/-0), Olst (5114, +209), Welsum and Welsumerveld (605, +2), Wesepe (1206, +18) and Wijhe (6104, -3).
The mansion of Nijenhuis (near the border with Raalte
) has been converted into an art gallery
(a.o. Permeke
, Van Gogh
) with sculpture garden
(a.o. Zadkine
). There are windmill
s at Welsum, Olst (two), Boskamp, Wesepe, Marle and Wijhe (two). Of these, the ones at Welsum, Olst (one), Marle and Wijhe (one) are still fully functional.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
in the province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of Overijssel
Overijssel
Overijssel is a province of the Netherlands in the central eastern part of the country. The region has a NUTS classification of NL21. The province's name means "Lands across river IJssel". The capital city of Overijssel is Zwolle and the largest city is Enschede...
, eastern Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. It borders the Overijssel municipalities of Zwolle
Zwolle
Zwolle is a municipality and the capital city of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands, 120 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam. Zwolle has about 120,000 citizens.-History:...
to the north, Raalte
Raalte
Raalte is a municipality and city in the heart of the region of Salland in the Dutch province of Overijssel.-Population centres:The municipality consists of the following towns and villages.-Transportation:* Railway stations: Heino, Raalte...
to the north and east and Deventer
Deventer
Deventer is a municipality and city in the Salland region of the Dutch province of Overijssel. Deventer is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, but also has a small part of its territory on the west bank. In 2005 the municipality of Bathmen Deventer is a municipality and city in...
to the south; and the Gelderland
Gelderland
Gelderland is the largest province of the Netherlands, located in the central eastern part of the country. The capital city is Arnhem. The two other major cities, Nijmegen and Apeldoorn have more inhabitants. Other major regional centers in Gelderland are Ede, Doetinchem, Zutphen, Tiel, Wijchen,...
municipalities of Voorst
Voorst
Voorst is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands.- Population centres :* Appen * Bussloo...
, Epe
Epe
' is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands.The town has 15,593 inhabitants, whilst the municipality as a whole has a population of 32,989....
and Heerde
Heerde
Heerde is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. Compared to the rest of the Netherlands, Heerde is fairly religious, as are many of the towns and cities in the Veluwe region...
to the west.
History and economic activities
Both of the municipality's main towns, Olst and Wijhe, are old towns. Olst, which is believed to have been founded in the seventh century, is first mentioned in chronicleChronicle
Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the...
s in 947 (as "Holsto"), Wijhe in 960 (as "Wie"). Traditionally, agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
(fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
and cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
s), cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
, meat
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
processing and the production of brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
s in open-air brickworks
Brickworks
A brickworks also known as a brick factory, is a factory for the manufacturing of bricks, from clay or shale. Usually a brickworks is located on a clay bedrock often with a quarry for clay on site....
along river IJssel
IJssel
River IJssel , sometimes called Gelderse IJssel to avoid confusion with its Hollandse IJssel namesake in the west of the Netherlands, is a branch of the Rhine in the Dutch provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel...
were the prime sources of income in the area.
Nowadays, Olst and Wijhe are mainly commuter residences for people working in Deventer
Deventer
Deventer is a municipality and city in the Salland region of the Dutch province of Overijssel. Deventer is largely situated on the east bank of the river IJssel, but also has a small part of its territory on the west bank. In 2005 the municipality of Bathmen Deventer is a municipality and city in...
and Zwolle
Zwolle
Zwolle is a municipality and the capital city of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands, 120 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam. Zwolle has about 120,000 citizens.-History:...
respectively; both towns have had a railroad station on the Zwolle
Zwolle
Zwolle is a municipality and the capital city of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands, 120 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam. Zwolle has about 120,000 citizens.-History:...
–Nijmegen main line (route 3600) since 1866. The surrounding land still relies heavily on agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
. There is some small industry
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
in Olst (machinery manufacturing) and Wijhe (meat processing).
Merger of municipalities
The present municipality was created on 1 January 2001 through the merger of the two former municipalities of Olst and Wijhe as part of a nation-wide bid to reduce administrative overhead on the municipal level. The newly merged municipality retained the name of its largest constituent part, Olst, pending approval of a definitive new name. After proposed neutral names containing neither "Olst" nor "Wijhe" met with little enthusiasm, it was decided to simply name the municipality Olst-Wijhe as of January 1, 2002.Although the town of Wijhe
Wijhe
Wijhe is a village in the Dutch province of Overijssel. It is located in the municipality of Olst-Wijhe, about 12 km south of Zwolle on the banks of the river IJssel.Wijhe was a separate municipality until 2001, when it merged with Olst....
has more inhabitants than the town of Olst
Olst
Olst is a village in the Dutch province of Overijssel. It is located in the municipality of Olst-Wijhe, about 7 km north of Deventer.Until 2002, Olst was the seat of the municipality of the same name...
, the latter was chosen to be the formal seat of the municipality as the former municipality of Olst was larger in both area and population than the former municipality of Wijhe. Because of sensitive feelings concerning the merger, particularly in Wijhe, this fact is downplayed and municipal services are spread over both main towns.
Geographical features
Olst-Wijhe is dominated by river IJsselIJssel
River IJssel , sometimes called Gelderse IJssel to avoid confusion with its Hollandse IJssel namesake in the west of the Netherlands, is a branch of the Rhine in the Dutch provinces of Gelderland and Overijssel...
, which flows through it and in some parts forms the border between the provinces Overijssel and Gelderland. Although this border largely runs along river IJssel, there are two left-bank exclaves opposite the towns of Olst and Wijhe, in which the villages of Welsum and Welsumerveld (south exclave) and Marle (north exclave) are situated. There are cable ferries
Cable ferry
A cable ferry is guided and in many cases propelled across a river or other larger body of water by cables connected to both shores. They are also called chain ferries, floating bridges, or punts....
between Olst and Welsum and between Wijhe and Vorchten in the municipality of Heerde
Heerde
Heerde is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands. Compared to the rest of the Netherlands, Heerde is fairly religious, as are many of the towns and cities in the Veluwe region...
(there is no direct connection between Marle and the rest of Overijssel).
Olst-Wijhe is part of the low-lying Salland
Salland
Salland is a historical dominion in the west and north of the present Dutch province of Overijssel. It is probably named after the Salian Franks, who are thought to originate from Salland...
region. The one metre above mean sea level contour line
Contour line
A contour line of a function of two variables is a curve along which the function has a constant value. In cartography, a contour line joins points of equal elevation above a given level, such as mean sea level...
runs roughly parallel to the river; the municipality's interior is characterised by flat or gently rolling grasslands and woodlands at about 10–15 metres above mean sea level.
Apart from river IJssel, several more streams flow through the municipality's territory. They are called wetering ("drainage waterway") and are amalgamations of natural streams gradually channelised from the 18th century onwards and specifically dug canals
. From west to east, these are Zandwetering, Soestwetering, Groote Vloedgraven, Oude Wetering and Nieuwe Wetering. All these streams flow in a south-north direction and come together at one point or other to eventually form the Zwarte Water
Zwarte Water
The Zwarte Water is a river in the Dutch province of Overijssel. It is formed just south of the city of Zwolle when two streams, the Soestwetering and the Nieuwe Wetering, merge...
river near the city of Zwolle
Zwolle
Zwolle is a municipality and the capital city of the province of Overijssel, Netherlands, 120 kilometers northeast of Amsterdam. Zwolle has about 120,000 citizens.-History:...
. On the left side of river IJssel, near the exclave of Welsum, there are several more wetering streams, all but one of them on the Gelderland side of the border; the exception being the easternmost of these, the Terwoldsche Wetering, which forms the border between Olst-Wijhe and Voorst.
Population centres
The municipality consists of the following villageVillage
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
s and hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
s (2009 population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
figures with difference from 2007 figures): Boerhaar (732, +10), Boskamp (1091, -51), Den Nul (568, +20), Duur (189, +6), Eikelhof and Overwetering (295, -14), Elshof (473, +26), Fortmond (104, -3), Hengforden (456, +37), Herxen (320, +4), Marle (76, +2), Middel (213, +/-0), Olst (5114, +209), Welsum and Welsumerveld (605, +2), Wesepe (1206, +18) and Wijhe (6104, -3).
Transportation
- Railway stations: OlstOlst railway stationOlst is a railway station located in Olst, Olst-Wijhe, The Netherlands. The station was opened on 1st October 1866 and is located on the Deventer - Zwolle section of the Arnhem–Leeuwarden railway. The train services are operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen. The station lies in the centre of Olst...
, WijheWijhe railway stationWijhe is a railway station located in Wijhe, Olst-Wijhe, The Netherlands. The station was opened on 1 October 1866 and is located on the Deventer - Zwolle section of the Arnhem–Leeuwarden railway. The train services are operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen...
General: mansions and windmills
- There are numerous mansions and country houses strewn around the municipality, most of them built in the eighteenth century. These include Groot Hoenlo, Klein Hoenlo, Nijendal, De Haere, Wijnbergen, De Hei and Nijenhuis. The mansions themselves are generally still inhabited or used for commercial purposes and so cannot be visited, but their grounds are open to visitors to stroll around.
The mansion of Nijenhuis (near the border with Raalte
Raalte
Raalte is a municipality and city in the heart of the region of Salland in the Dutch province of Overijssel.-Population centres:The municipality consists of the following towns and villages.-Transportation:* Railway stations: Heino, Raalte...
) has been converted into an art gallery
Art gallery
An art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...
(a.o. Permeke
Constant Permeke
Constant Permeke was a Belgian painter and sculptor who is considered the leading figure of Flemish expressionism.Permeke was born in Antwerp but when he was six years old the family moved to Ostend, where his father became curator of the Municipal Museum of Arts. Permeke went to school in Bruges...
, Van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh , and used Brabant dialect in his writing; it is therefore likely that he himself pronounced his name with a Brabant accent: , with a voiced V and palatalized G and gh. In France, where much of his work was produced, it is...
) with sculpture garden
Sculpture garden
A sculpture garden is an outdoor garden dedicated to the presentation of sculpture, usually several permanently sited works in durable materials in landscaped surroundings....
(a.o. Zadkine
Ossip Zadkine
Ossip Zadkine was a Belarusian-born artist who lived in France. He is primarily known as a sculptor, but also produced paintings and lithographs.-Early years and career:...
). There are windmill
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
s at Welsum, Olst (two), Boskamp, Wesepe, Marle and Wijhe (two). Of these, the ones at Welsum, Olst (one), Marle and Wijhe (one) are still fully functional.
Eikelhof
- The murder cross, erected in medieval times to commemorate/atone for a highwayHighwayA highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
murderMurderMurder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
and source of many apocryphal mythical storiesFolkloreFolklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
. It bears the legend:
INT JAER UNSES HERENAnno Dominiand Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
MCCCC EN XCIII
STIERF HIER JOHAN LUCKENS
BID VOER DE SELE
(In the year of Our LordAnno Dominiand Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
1493 | Johan Luckens died here | pray for the soul)
- A small museumMuseumA museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
of regional geologyGeologyGeology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
halfway between Eikelhof and Boskamp
Olst
- A RomanesqueRomanesque architectureRomanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
ProtestantProtestant Church in the NetherlandsThe Protestant Church in the Netherlands is the largest Protestant Christian denomination in the Netherlands. With 2,000 congregations and a membership of some 1.8 million , it is the second largest church in the Netherlands after the Roman Catholic Church.It was founded 1 May 2004 as a merger of...
church completed in 1264, partly built from its predecessor's sandstoneSandstoneSandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, otherwise from brickBrickA brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:... - Het Baken van OverijsselOverijsselOverijssel is a province of the Netherlands in the central eastern part of the country. The region has a NUTS classification of NL21. The province's name means "Lands across river IJssel". The capital city of Overijssel is Zwolle and the largest city is Enschede...
("The Overijssel Beacon"), an installation of modern artModern artModern art includes artistic works produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the style and philosophy of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the traditions of the past have been thrown aside in a spirit of...
made of aluminiumAluminiumAluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
at the eastern bank of river IJssel, signifying the entrance to Overijssel province
Welsum
- A saddle-roofed Protestant church (nineteenth-century naveNaveIn Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
, sixteenth-century steepleSteeple (architecture)A steeple, in architecture, is a tall tower on a building, often topped by a spire. Steeples are very common on Christian churches and cathedrals and the use of the term generally connotes a religious structure...
)
External links
- Official website of the Municipality of Olst-Wijhe
- Detailed geographical map
- Museum of Regional Geology (page in Dutch)
- Resources for the village of Wesepe (page in Dutch)