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Museums / Nij Beets

Friesland · History

It Damshûs: peat, living and water management at two sites

It Damshûs tells not only how peat was extracted, but also how the lives of peat workers were organised. At weekends, the nearby Sudergemaal is part of the visit as well.

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A village in miniature

The open-air site has reconstructed houses, a small church and a shop-cum-pub belonging to the peat boss (veenbaas). Walk through the buildings as a coherent little neighbourhood and notice differences in space, possessions and everyday comfort.

Work in the peat

The display places peat production alongside social conditions. With the tools and workplaces, look at which steps were needed between wet peat and usable fuel, and who did the heaviest or most precise work.

Sudergemaal at a distance

The Sudergemaal is about two kilometres away and is only open at the same time as the museum at weekends. There the focus shifts from peat to electric water management and temporary art displays.

Before you go

On weekdays in the season, only It Damshûs is open. In April and October only groups are welcome, by appointment; the site closes in the event of a KNMI code red.

Sources

This first edition has been compiled from collected museum information. Not all of the information has yet been confirmed by the museum. Viewing tips are by the editorial team. The sources used are listed below.

  1. Research card 0185 — It Damshûs

    Source reference supplied; independent source check still needed. Unverified reference from a supplied research card; content, authority and currency still to be checked independently.

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