Hoogezand
Hoogezand is a village in the municipality Hoogezand-Sappemeer, located in the northeast Netherlands. The name refers to a higher sanded (Hooge Sandt) place in the peatlands cut through when the Winschoterdiep channel was dug. Near this channel in 1618 the village was founded.
In the beginning the town was a center of peat briquettes producing. When the peat ran out factories for cardboard and potato plants opened. At the moment Hoogezand is most known for the shipbuilding industry. On the shipyards the vessels are launched sideways, which is uncommon for slipways.
In 1949 Hoogezand en Sappemeer became one city. At the moment Hoogezand-Sappemeer has 34 438 citizens (2005). Around 21 000 of them live in Hoogezand.
Weblinks
http://www.hoogezand-sappemeer.nl/
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