Numansdorp

History

Numansdorp was founded in 1642. The village was built in the Numanspolder. It took a while till the embankment of this polder was started. The reason for the delay was a disagreement between the Lords of Cromstrijen and the owners of Zuid-Beijerland. When the founding of the village had finally taken place, it still didn't have an official name, even though the locals called it Buitensluis. In a meeting it was decided to call the village "Village of Cromstrijen" (Dorp van Cromstrijen). But Dijkgraaf Vos, the chairman of the meeting, believed the village should me named after the first Ambachtsheer, Gerard Numan. The first buildings of the village were built around the drainage sluice at the Numanspolderdijk (now called Molendijk) and from there the town spread along the Binnenhaven. The main street, the Voorstraat, was expanded with several crossing streets. In 1647, at the end of one of those crossing streets called the Kerkstraat, the "Reformed Church" (Hervormde Kerk) was built. At the change of 19th century, more buildings were built along the East side of the Voorstraat and several streets crossing it. The drainage sluice was till 1662 made of wood, its successor was made of stone. In 1912 the sluice was replaced by a diesel-run pumping station and in 1942 by one that ran on electricity. There is a sluice door in the sea dike of the Torensteepolder. It originated from before 1970, when the Haringvliet and Volkerak were still open and there were still tides in the Hollands Diep. The Molendijk had a sluice to the Binnenhaven called Buitensluis. From there the water runs to Klaaswaal. The Middelsluissedijk 1625 had one to the polder Groot-Cromstrijen, also known as Middelsluis (also a village), and the Boomdijk had one for the polder Klein-Cromstrijen called…