Zwanenburg
Encyclopedia
Zwanenburg is a town in the Dutch
province of North Holland
. It is a part of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer
, and lies about 11 km west of Amsterdam
.
Zwanenburg has a population of around 7,670.
, the former headquarters of the Hoogheemraadschap Rijnland, a Water Board that used to have its headquarters in Halfweg, on the other side of the canal known today as the Ringvaart
. Up until the 19th century, Zwanenburg was under water. When the pumping station at Halfweg had succeeded in making the land ripe for building, the workers who had settled at Halfweg purchased this cheap land below the dike for their homes. The infrastructure linking Halfweg to Haarlem
and Amsterdam
was already quite good, so Zwanenburg became a true commuter town. Halfweg was also the site of a large sugar factory, first opened in 1863, that served as an employer for Zwanenburg residents for more than a century. For this reason, the history of Zwanenburg cannot be seen separately from the history of Halfweg.
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...
province of North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...
. It is a part of the municipality of Haarlemmermeer
Haarlemmermeer
Haarlemmermeer is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is a polder, consisting of land reclaimed from water, and the name Haarlemmermeer means Haarlem's Lake, still referring to the body of water from which the region was reclaimed in the 19th century.Its main...
, and lies about 11 km west of Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
.
Zwanenburg has a population of around 7,670.
History
Zwanenburg takes its name from Gemeenlandshuis ZwanenburgGemeenlandshuis Zwanenburg
.The Gemeenlandshuis Zwanenburg on the Haarlemmerstraatweg in Halfweg is a former Gemeenlandshuis of the Hoogheemraadschap van Rijnland designed by Pieter Post and built 1645-1648. Today it is part of Sugar City.-History:...
, the former headquarters of the Hoogheemraadschap Rijnland, a Water Board that used to have its headquarters in Halfweg, on the other side of the canal known today as the Ringvaart
Ringvaart
The Ringvaart is a canal in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands. The Ringvaart is a true circular canal surrounding the Haarlemmermeer polder and forms the boundary of the Haarlemmermeer municipality...
. Up until the 19th century, Zwanenburg was under water. When the pumping station at Halfweg had succeeded in making the land ripe for building, the workers who had settled at Halfweg purchased this cheap land below the dike for their homes. The infrastructure linking Halfweg to Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
and Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
was already quite good, so Zwanenburg became a true commuter town. Halfweg was also the site of a large sugar factory, first opened in 1863, that served as an employer for Zwanenburg residents for more than a century. For this reason, the history of Zwanenburg cannot be seen separately from the history of Halfweg.