Smilde

Town in Drenthe, Netherlands

Flag

Coat of arms

52°56′55″N 6°26′54″E / 52.94861°N 6.44833°E / 52.94861; 6.44833CountryNetherlandsProvinceDrentheMunicipalityMidden-DrentheArea

^[1]

• Total22.96 km² (8.86 sq mi)Elevation

^[2]

14 m (46 ft)Population

(2021)^[1]

• Total4,500 • Density200/km² (510/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+1 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)Postal code

9422^[1]

Dialing code0592

Smilde is a town in the Netherlands' northern province of Drenthe and lies about 10 kilometers (6.2 mi) southwest of the province capital of Assen. Smilde was a separate municipality until 1998, when it became a part of Middenveld. However, that name changed in 2000 and was renamed the municipality of Midden-Drenthe.^[3]

History

The village was first mentioned in 1846 as Smilde. The etymology is unclear.^[4] Smilde is a elongated canal village which developed around 1770. Between 1767 and 1780, the Drentsche Hoofdvaart [nl] was dug to excavate the peat in the area. The first settlement was called Kloosterveen and was later renamed to Smilde.^[5]

The Dutch Reformed church was built between 1780 and 1788 in Louis XVI style. It was restored in 1963.^[5] The former town hall was originally built as a villa in Renaissance Revival style and was named Villa Maria. In 1931, it became town hall.^[5]

Smilde was home to 1,675 people in 1840.^[6] Smilde was an independent municipality until 1998 when it was merged into Midden-Drenthe.^[6]

Education

There are two primary schools, De Schutkampen and Prinses Margriet (Princess Margriet of the Netherlands).^[7]

People from Smilde

Jaap Berghuis (1945-2005), painter
Carry van Bruggen-de Haan (1881–1932), writer
Jacob Israël de Haan (1881–1924), anti-Zionist and ultra-Orthodox activist
Hendrikje van Andel-Schipper (1890–2005), oldest person from the Netherlands, aged 115 at the time of her death
Alwin Kloekhorst (b. 1978), Indo-Europeanist and Hittitologist at the University of Leiden

Gallery

Draw bridge of Smilde
House in Smilde
Villa in Smilde
Former town hall

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2021". Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
^ "Postcodetool for 9422AA". Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland (in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
^ Ad van der Meer and Onno Boonstra, Repertorium van Nederlandse gemeenten, KNAW, 2011.
^ "Smilde - (geografische naam)". Etymologiebank (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 April 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c Ronald Stenvert (2001). Drouwenerveen (in Dutch). Zwolle: Waanders. p. 61. ISBN 90 400 9454 3. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
^ ^a ^b "Smilde". Plaatsengids (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 April 2022.
^ "Scholen" (in Dutch). Midden-Drenthe. Retrieved 15 April 2023.