Maatschappij van Weldadigheid

The Society of Humanitarianism (Maatschappij van Weldadigheid) was a Dutch private organization set up in 1818 by general Johannes van den Bosch to help poor families, mostly from the big cities, improve their lot in the aftermath of the Napoleonic French occupation by granting them farming land. He petitioned William I of the Netherlands for its formation and bought uncultivated land in Drenthe for the poor to exploit. The Estate 'Westerbeeksloot' in what is now Frederiksoord was the society's administrative center.

The Society then built permanent colonies consisting of small colony houses with a little ground. Those houses were regularly spaced along straight roads. The colonies I and II were later transformed into the village Frederiksoord, the other colonies to the villages Wilhelminaoord and Boschoord (in Southwest Drenthe) and Willemsoord (in Northwest Overijssel). Here were about 1400 families collected in the period 1818-1911. To educate the population and safeguarding of bad influences, the Society founded its own schools and they implemented “'colony money”. That money did not exist long, but the schools did. In addition to elementary schools, the Society also founded vocational training schools which operated from 1829 to 1859 as the 'Institute for Agriculture' in Wateren and the “Gerard Adriaan van Swieten” horticultural and forestry school in Frederiksoord and the ”Gerard Adriaan van Swieten” Agricultural School in 1884 in Willemsoord.The foundation of these schools was made possible by a donation from the former major of cavalry, F.H. L.van Swieten. [3]. The horticultural school moved to Meppel in November 2005.

Johannes van den Bosch went energetically to work. On August 25, 1818 - one week after the purchase of the property by the Estate Westerbeeksloot - he laid the foundation stone for the first settlers home. On October 29, 1818 the first families arrived in the colony, which was still a “trial colony”. A total of 52 families from all parts of the country "chosen" to participate in the experiment of Johannes van den Bosch. After four and a half years, there were still 42 families under the care of the Society of Humanitarianism. A large part of them lived their until their death Their adventures are described by Wil Schackmann in "De Proefkolonie"[2].

Some, especially younger - ousted from the colony settled in the vicinity in hastily built sod huts and formed the so-called renegade-like colonies in Nijensleek,Vledderveen, North or South Wolde-Marijenkampen (at Steenwijk). [5]

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