Our house was rebuilt in 1913 according to drawings and building permit. Aerial photographs from the beginning of the last century show that the back house was different in shape and probably thatched. In the 1970s, the part was put into use as a second home and the house has been given its current shape, with us changing the side and rear facade ourselves to get more light in the house and keep warmth inside. The entire interior has been completely renovated in 2017-2020, including a heat pump and solar panels installed. The yard has also been modified because we could no longer get to the dike in the winter and had flooding, both due to the dike weighting.
On the site of the house there was previously another house, with a different shape (see the map from 1848). We think this house has been an inn because it is in old parts, but the inn may also have stood on the site of the former sluice. In any case, our place has been built since before 1648. On the yard we find old bricks, pieces of foundation and part of an old road that can be seen on aerial photos.
What is special is that in this place the house seems to have been made of stone for a long time while it is very close to the core of a forbidden circle, within which only woodwork was allowed. Perhaps the then owner had a role in the Werk aan het Spoel.
Although the Work and the entire waterline actually played no role in the German invasion, the Work was mobilised and after the capitulation our farm was used by the German local commander (the farmer had to sleep in a stable) and barracks for soldiers were placed in the yard. Traces of the mobilisation are the Ball Catcher and the monument-placed Asparagus Barrier. The 'bunkers' that the area is littered with here are actually group shelters, which were built when it was realised that the German would be able to destroy a fortress or work at once. So the soldiers were housed scattered. One of the reasons they have not been cleaned up, with a few examples, is the fact that they are founded very deep into the ground. If you want to take a look inside, ask for a tour of the Werk aan het Spoel or swing over the Diefdijk just over the A2 to see a sawed-through copy.