Discover Noordbeemster: Farmhouses and Polder History

Noordbeemster between polder history and farmhouse culture

A holiday apartment in Noordbeemster offers a view of a place whose character is closely connected with houses, farmyards and the history of the Beemster. Noordbeemster developed as a linear settlement of houses and farmhouses. In the historic village centre, the appearance of the old districts that emerged in the Beemster has been preserved. Several traditional Stelphoeve farmhouses still stand along the road. As you explore the village, you therefore encounter not just arbitrary individual buildings, but different examples of a rural architectural history.

The oldest building in Noordbeemster dates from 1725 and began as one of five school buildings in the new polder. The range of regional products is also part of the local character: in Noordbeemster, there are several places where products are sold directly from the farm.

Historic houses with different details

Beemsters Wapen is considered a well-preserved example of late-19th-century farmhouse architecture in the Beemster and has cultural and architectural-historical value. At the same time, it is a Noordhollandse-type farmhouse in Noordbeemster, built in 1884, featuring eclectic details and two pairs of outward-opening garden doors in the central section—an unusual solution outside the Beemster. Hovenberg is also a Noordhollandse-type farmhouse in Noordbeemster. It was built in 1889 and has two pairs of outward-opening garden doors in the central section, likewise an unusual solution outside the Beemster.

Other examples emphasise different features: De Vlijthoeve was built in 1852 in a regionally characteristic style with eclectic details. Zonnehoek was built in 1869 and has a very restrained neoclassical design on the front gable. Poortugal is a brick Stelphoeve farmhouse with a higher central section of the front gable and a cartouche dating from 1780. At Oosthuizerweg 25 stands a protected wooden house from the early 19th century with a pointed gable, fanlight above the entrance and carved door.

Polder landscape and traces of water management

The polder house complex includes a well-preserved example of structures built as part of water management in the Beemster polder; the complex has architectural and cultural-historical value. A cast-iron footbridge leads over and partly into the Noorddijk to the polder house of the Beemster polder. The complex also includes an artistically designed garden gate serving as an enclosure, dating from the second half of the 19th century.

Kruisoord is a former peat peninsula in the northern part of the Beemster Polder and lies about 2 metres above the level of the surrounding polder. Its parcel structure differs markedly from that of the Beemster Polder and corresponds to that of the Beetskoog Polder. The ring canal constructed between 1610 and 1612 to drain the Beemster separated Kruisoord from the Beetskoog Polder, making Kruisoord a cultural landscape phenomenon. A wide path beside a gate located farther back on the Westdijk is a remnant of the former mill passage.

Special experiences in Noordbeemster

Noordbeemster is home to Beemster Mini Koe, a special facility centred around rare miniature cows. The miniature cattle include Mini Galloways and Mini Highlanders. Feed-&-Greet meetings are held on the site on a small scale. De Boetserie, an official Rustpunt, is also located on the Westdijk in the Beemster.

When choosing a holiday apartment in Noordbeemster, you can combine different travel interests: historic houses and polder structures for culture-focused days, Kruisoord and the former mill passage for exploring the landscape, and miniature cattle and farm products for special impressions of the rural surroundings. For further orientation, you can also view Middenbeemster or Zuidoostbeemster.

For the overview of the wider area: Beemster.