Schermer
Encyclopedia
Schermer is a municipality in the Netherlands
, in the province of North Holland
. The name came from "skir mere", which means "bright lake" (ref. Groenedijk, 2000).
The municipality
of Schermer includes not only the Schermer polder
, but also the polders Oterleek
, Mijzenpolder, and Eilandspolder.
, and a small river called the Schermer flowed through it. Because of peat-digging by man, and storm floods, this small river had by 1250 developed into an inland lake with an open connection with the Zuyderzee
. In the 17th century private investors started draining the largest part of the lake, leaving the southern part, the Alkmaardermeer, intact. In 1635 47.7 km² (18.4 sq mi) of polder was drained, whereupon the land was divided among the shareholders.
, Schermerhorn, Stompetoren
, Zuidschermer
. The latter two are located in the Schermer polder.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, in the province of North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...
. The name came from "skir mere", which means "bright lake" (ref. Groenedijk, 2000).
The municipality
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of Schermer includes not only the Schermer polder
Polder
A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...
, but also the polders Oterleek
Oterleek
Oterleek is a village in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Schermer, and lies about 4 km south of Heerhugowaard.Oterleek was a separate municipality between 1817 and 1970, when it was merged with Schermer....
, Mijzenpolder, and Eilandspolder.
History
Around 800 AD, the area that now the municipality of Schermer was covered in peatPeat
Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...
, and a small river called the Schermer flowed through it. Because of peat-digging by man, and storm floods, this small river had by 1250 developed into an inland lake with an open connection with the Zuyderzee
Zuider Zee
The Zuiderzee was a shallow bay of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km inland and at most 50 km wide, with an overall depth of about 4 to 5 metres and a coastline of about 300 km . It covered...
. In the 17th century private investors started draining the largest part of the lake, leaving the southern part, the Alkmaardermeer, intact. In 1635 47.7 km² (18.4 sq mi) of polder was drained, whereupon the land was divided among the shareholders.
Population centres
The municipality of Schermer consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Driehuizen, Grootschermer, OterleekOterleek
Oterleek is a village in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Schermer, and lies about 4 km south of Heerhugowaard.Oterleek was a separate municipality between 1817 and 1970, when it was merged with Schermer....
, Schermerhorn, Stompetoren
Stompetoren
Stompetoren is a town in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Schermer, and lies about 6 km southeast of Alkmaar.In 2001, the town of Stompetoren had 1087 inhabitants...
, Zuidschermer
Zuidschermer
Zuidschermer is a town in the Dutch province of North Holland. It is a part of the municipality of Schermer, and lies about 7 km south of Alkmaar....
. The latter two are located in the Schermer polder.
Local government
The municipal council of Schermer consists of eleven seats, which are divided as follows:- CDAChristian Democratic AppealThe Christian Democratic Appeal is a centre-right Dutch Christian democratic political party. It suffered severe losses in the 2010 elections and fell from the first to the fourth place...
- 3 seats - Gemeentebelangen - 3 seats
- SGOL - 2 seats
- VVDPeople's Party for Freedom and DemocracyThe People's Party for Freedom and Democracy is a conservative-liberal political party located in the Netherlands. The VVD supports private enterprise in the Netherlands and is often perceived as an economic liberal party in contrast to the social-liberal Democrats 66 alongside which it sits in...
- 2 seats - PvdALabour Party (Netherlands)The Labour Party , is a social-democratic political party in the Netherlands. Since the 2003 Dutch General Election, the PvdA has been the second largest political party in the Netherlands. The PvdA was a coalition member in the fourth Balkenende cabinet following 22 February 2007...
- 1 seat