Every design for Beilen

In Beilen, the Stefanuskerk is the only truly old building left standing, the one survivor of the fire that swept through the village in 1820. Everything else you see grew up afterwards, around the church and the station on the eastern edge of the village.

What gives Beilen its identity is its place in the very middle of the province: people call it the heart of Drenthe. It is the main town of Midden-Drenthe, held between the railway from Groningen to Zwolle, the A28 motorway and the nature area of the Terhorsterzand, with forests and reserves all around that bring in visitors. The village has a long tradition of care. The institution Beileroord, opened in the twenties, placed many of its patients with families in and around Beilen, and today, as GGZ Drenthe, it is still one of the biggest employers, alongside the milk powder factory and a large Jumbo distribution centre. Under the fields lay a hoard of gold from late Roman times, with a bracelet, torques and gold coins, the richest treasure ever found in Drenthe soil. It is now on show in the Drents Museum in Assen.

When you are back for the Wende-aovends in August, with the shops full of children's activities and local artists out at night, say hello to Bartje.