Old Aalten

Category: Police

  • Aalten Police

    Aalten Police

    Landstraat 18

    The first known predecessor of a police station in Aalten can be found on Landstraat, in the building that currently houses Ter Maat barbershop.

    The accompanying drawing of the building in question was made by the Aalten artist Willy Walvoort, who passed away in 2018. He wrote: “The village school in 1824. Above: the entrance was on the church hill. Below: on Landstraat, the night watch, prison, and fire brigade.”

    It is (as yet) unknown until when the night watch and/or constables had their headquarters here. We also do not yet know which other addresses served as police stations before 1941.

    Public Primary School, Landstraat, Aalten, drawing by Willy Walvoort
    Public Primary School Landstraat, by Willy Walvoort
    Markt 3, Aalten (1972)
    Markt 3, Aalten (1972)

    Markt 3

    In 1941, the Aalten municipal police moved into the characteristic building with the elegant bell gable at Markt 3. When the station was put into use, Chief Constable Wijnands was the head of the Aalten police. In 1947, the municipal police transitioned into the national police.

    After the war, the municipal services suffered from a lack of space. In 1949, the municipality of Aalten therefore purchased a building on the opposite side of the Markt (number 4) to house the police station.

    The Social Services office was housed in Markt 3. Today, the building is still part of the Aalten town hall.

    Markt 4

    The building at Markt 4 was privately inhabited before the war and had a notorious reputation in Aalten during the war, as it had served as the clubhouse for the NSB (National Socialist Movement). After the war, the building fell under the Management department of the Council for the Restoration of Rights. They sold the building to the municipality of Aalten in 1949, and the local police station was established there.

    In 1969, the Tubantia newspaper reported that the municipality of Aalten had informed the Government Buildings Agency that they were terminating the lease of the police station. The municipal services were once again bursting at the seams and desperately needed the space. The police moved to a new station on Polstraat.

    Shortly before the move, the garage collapsed behind the police station, which was located on Peperstraat.

    The building at Markt 4 now houses the catering establishment De Geste.

    Markt 4, Aalten
    Markt 4, Aalten
    Polstraat 36, Aalten
    Polstraat 36, in the year 2022 (source: Google Streetview)

    Polstraat 36

    As early as February 1963, the site on the corner of Polstraat and Bonifaciusstraat was purchased by the municipality of Aalten, including the small farmhouse of the widow Scholten. It was likely already the intention then to demolish it and realize a new police station and a number of houses on the site.

    In 1965, the Aalten municipal council discussed the private sale of a section of the building plot, measuring 1,500 square metres, for the construction of a group and district office for the National Police (Rijkspolitie) in Aalten.

    It would take until the early 1970s before the new police station was completed. The Aalten police remained stationed here until 2018, when they moved to the Köstersbulte. A dental practice has since established itself in the former police station on Polstraat.

    Köstersbulte 2

    Since 2018, the police have had a support point in the town hall, with its own entrance on Köstersbulte. The support point serves as a workplace for community officers during their shifts. There are no official opening hours. If someone wishes to file a report, for example, it is advised to make an appointment.

    In the last century, this building housed the Oberink drapery shop for decades.

    Police Station - Köstersbulte 2, Aalten
    Köstersbulte 2, Aalten
  • Jan Steven Schaars Prins

    Jan Steven Schaars Prins

    State Constable

    Jan Steven Schaars Prins (1817–1893)
    Jan Steven Schaars Prins (1817–1893)

    Jan Steven Schaars Prins was born in Aalten on February 23, 1817, the son of farmer Laurens Prins and Anna Elisabeth Hiebink. In 1823, the family lived at the address Aalten 3, currently Kerkstraat 5, and his father was listed with the profession of innkeeper.

    On April 20, 1843, Jan Steven Schaars Prins married Johanna Walvoort. Together they had three children. After Johanna passed away in 1851, he remarried Berendeken Walvoort in 1853. They had six children together.

    From 1858 to 1885, Jan Steven Schaars Prins was a state constable in Aalten. The mere mention of his name was enough to strike fear into people’s hearts. The youth would retreat into their shells when his name was mentioned, and it was used to get naughty rascals to go to bed.

    But adults also held him in awe. He was an imposing figure, which in itself helped to restore order. And when he took action, order was restored immediately.

    Schaars Prins was, so to speak, a powerhouse who had faced many a challenge. He often went out alone to cite dangerous poachers, but he also demonstrated his strength against criminals. Reportedly, he was once overpowered by poachers in the Aaltense Goor and tied to a tree. He was freed by a passerby several hours later.

    In 1876, Schaars Prins received an honorable distinction from King Wilhelm I of Prussia for courageous behavior shown the previous year during the arrest of two German murderers who had escaped from the prison in Bocholt.

    Jan Steven Schaars Prins passed away on August 23, 1893, in Aalten.

    Newspaper reports

    Het Vaderland, 1876-03-07
    Het Vaderland, March 7, 1876
    Jan Steven Schaars Prins, Aalten - Zutphensche Courant, 1886-03-26
    Zutphensche Courant, March 26, 1886
    S. van Leuven and J.S. Schaars Prins - Zutphensche Courant, 1886-04-17
    Zutphensche Courant, April 17, 1886
    J.S. Schaars Prins - Zutphensche Courant, 1893-08-26
    Zutphensche Courant, August 26, 1893

    Sources

  • Police Station

    Police Station

    Polstraat 36, Aalten (relocated)

    Police Station – Polstraat 36, Aalten (collection EHDC)
    The former police station on Polstraat (collection EHDC)

    The local police station was based here until 2018. Today, the building houses a dental practice.

    In February 1963, the Municipality of Aalten purchased the land on the corner of Polstraat and Bonifaciusstraat, which at the time occupied a small farm belonging to the widow Scholten. It is likely that the intention was already to demolish the farm and develop a new police station and a number of houses on the site.

    In 1965, the Aalten municipal council discussed the private sale of a section of the building plot, measuring 1,500 square metres, for the construction of a group and district office for the National Police (Rijkspolitie) in Aalten.

    It was not until the early 1970s that the new police station was completed. The Aalten police remained at this location until 2018, when they moved to the Köstersbulte.

    Features

    Cadastral no.I-11909
    FunctionHouse
    Year of construction1971
    Listedno

    Sources

    Polstraat 36, Aalten
    The local police station was based here until 2018. Today, the building houses a dental practice.
  • Rickety police garage collapsed

    Rickety police garage collapsed

    AALTEN — With a resounding thud, the garage of the old police station in the Peperstraatje collapsed yesterday. The rickety structure was unable to serve out its time. Within the foreseeable future, the new police station on the Polstraat will be completed, and the restoration of the building currently serving as the police station can begin. It will then house several municipal offices. The national police in Aalten will likely not be too distressed about the destroyed garage.

    They will, however, be concerned about the car that was parked in the garage at the moment it gave way. The police report drawn up regarding the incident states that the vehicle was quite seriously damaged. It is further unknown whether a report was filed against the owner of the property for neglecting maintenance obligations. In that case, it would be the municipality that should be held responsible for the damage to national property.

    Police garage collapsed – Tubantia, 30 October 1970

    Source

    • Daily newspaper Tubantia, 30 October 1970 (Delpher)
  • Night Watch & Constables

    Night Watch & Constables

    In 1937, G.H. Rots described in a series of articles how things were done in Aalten in former times. Regarding the ‘night watch’ and the constables (veldwachters) in Aalten, he wrote the following:

    “When the population of Aalten had found rest in the arms of Morpheus, they were watched over at night. The night watchman made his rounds and, accompanied by his faithful dog and with a thick rattan cane in hand, patrolled Aalten’s streets. He also served as a ‘knocker-up’; that is, if certain people needed to be woken early, he was the man who ensured it happened.

    For many years, the night watchman carried a rattle, and every time the tower clock was heard, the rattle was spun and the night watchman called out the hour that had struck. For example, at twelve o’clock, he would cry: ‘The clock has twelve, twelve has the clock!’. It was eventually realised that such customs were not conducive to the residents’ night’s rest, and the practice was subsequently abolished.

    For monitoring purposes, check-clocks were mounted at several points in the village, designed so that the authorities could verify whether the night watchmen had performed their duty. In turbulent times, or whenever the authorities deemed it necessary, the night watchman was reinforced by a ‘watch’. Each rot (ward) had to provide one man to stand guard. The ‘watch’ was stationed in the building where Mr ter Maat’s barbershop is now located.

    The permanent night watchman thus had the assistance of these men, and they accompanied him on patrol. When it was pitch black, it sometimes happened that such a greenhorn assistant-watchman lost his way and ended up in a refuse heap or a manure pit. It is well known that this circuit through the village—the rattling aside—was not entirely silent, and one could hear the night watchman approaching from afar. For thieves and other ruffians, this was the signal to take to their heels or go into hiding.”

    Night watchman – Aaltensche Courant, 3 December 1937
    Illustration: Piet te Lintum

    Since 1 January 1915, the night watchman in Aalten has been a thing of the past. One of the last night watchmen in Aalten was Jan te Slaa, better known as the town crier ‘Jan met de Panne’.

    spine-chilling stories

    “The old night watchmen could tell spine-chilling stories of what they had experienced at night. Hearing these tales made one’s skin crawl. For instance, it was said that ‘behind the hedges in the Heuksken’, a woman dressed in white wandered every night. And then there was that mysterious light in the charnel house at the churchyard. Sometimes, mysterious animals were encountered that made Aalten’s streets unsafe.
    Then there were the ‘premonitions’ of fire. If a fire broke out in the village, one of the night watchmen had sometimes seen a ‘red glow’ above the site weeks in advance. This happened quite often, as Aalten had a certain ‘reputation’ when it came to fires. There were occasions when fires broke out three days in a row. The ‘red glow’ must have been seen quite frequently then.

    The belief in witches and ghosts had not entirely vanished in the last century, so these ghost stories were often believed. According to folk belief, witches held meetings at night, and in the Aalter Esch, there was a spot used as a nocturnal witch’s dwelling. That piece of land, situated roughly halfway between the Linde and the Lichtenvoordscheweg, was called the ‘heksenbeddestëe’ (witches’ bedstead). It was a patch of no man’s land that no one claimed. The night watchmen were not afraid of any of this, and through their heroic stance against these mysterious things, they commanded great respect from the population. Undeniably, quite apart from the above, the night watchman performed good service, and many viewed the abolition of the night watch with regret.”

    Constables

    “And then there was the police surveillance. Jan Steven Schaars Prins was well known as a State Constable (Rijks-Veldwachter). Merely mentioning his name was enough to strike fear into people. The youth would retreat into their shells at the sound of his name, and naughty rascals could be sent to bed with it. But Schaars Prins was also someone held in awe by adults. His mere appearance helped to restore order, and when he took action, order was immediately reinstated.

    A formidable man, then, who certainly faced his share of trouble. Often he set out alone to fine dangerous poachers, but he also showed his strength against more serious criminals. The arrest of two escaped German murderers in 1875 earned him an honourable distinction from the German government.

    On one occasion, he is said to have been overpowered by superior force; poachers in the Aalter Goor tied him to a tree, and he was only freed a few hours later by a passer-by.

    Jan Steven Schaars Prins (1817–1893)
    Jan Steven Schaars Prins (1817–1893)

    In the middle of the last century, Jan te Hoonte and Constable Beernink were known as the municipal police. They were appointed at a salary of 145 guilders a year. Not too many official reports (proces-verbalen) were drawn up, for if a case had to be heard at the court in Zutphen, they had to make the journey to Zutphen on foot as witnesses. Fining a poacher, however, was another matter, as it yielded an extra reward, which was quite welcome alongside the aforementioned salary.

    The constable went to the town hall in the morning to ask if there was ‘anything special’ to report. Sometimes it was a message for a local resident, but usually, the Mayor had nothing on the agenda, and the constable would go to tend his farm; if something significant happened, one could find the constable out in the fields.”

    Sources

    • ‘From Aalten’s past’, by G.H. Rots, Aaltensche Courant, 26 November 1937 (Delpher)
    • Het Vaderland, 7 March 1876 (Delpher)
  • Good cooperation between Aalten and Bocholt police

    Good cooperation between Aalten and Bocholt police

    The municipal police were informed by telephone by the Bocholt police that two Dutchmen were suspiciously offering a bicycle for sale there. Two of our police officers subsequently left for Bocholt and found the suspects there, namely H. C. S. and M. v. d. Sch. Both individuals complied with the request to accompany them to Aalten, and an investigation revealed that both were residents of Doetinchem.

    A telephone conversation with the police revealed that a bicycle had been stolen from the Vijverberg by means of a break-in, and the bicycle S. had in his possession matched the stolen bike exactly. Both bicycles were then seized, and the suspects were subsequently taken in handcuffs to Doetinchem, where the case will be further investigated. It further appears that the suspects are notorious burglars. S. has already served 10 years in prison, and v.d. Sch. has been convicted on several occasions.

    The good relationship between the Bocholt and Aalten police is therefore the reason these dangerous gentlemen have been apprehended.

    Source

    • Nieuwe Winterswijksche Courant, 19 March 1926 (Delpher)
  • Gerrit Heersink

    Gerrit Heersink

    Gerrit Heersink was born on 13 May 1846 in Hummelo, the son of day labourer Jan Willem Heersink and Berendina Eenink. On 8 May 1873, he married Aleida Gesina Prinsen in Aalten. Nine children were born from this marriage.

    Heersink served as a ‘veldwachter’ (rural constable) in Aalten for nearly five decades. He lived with his family on the Kattenberg, on what is now Berkenhovestraat. His brother Lammert ran a bakery just a stone’s throw away.

    In early 1920, Gerrit Heersink moved to Haaksbergen, where he passed away on 27 December 1920 at the age of 74.

    Berkenhovestraat 7, Aalten (1917)
    Constable Gerrit Heersink with his daughters, standing in front of his house (1917)
    Constable Heersink – Graafschapbode, 12 September 1891
    Graafschapbode, 12 September 1891
    Constable Heersink, 25th anniversary of service – Weekblad voor Aalten, Breedevoort, enz., 27 February 1897
    Weekblad voor Aalten, Breedevoort, enz., 27 February 1897
    Gerrit Heersink (1846–1920), wearing the medal awarded to him in 1912 to mark his 40th anniversary of service as a constable.
    Gerrit Heersink (1846–1920), wearing the medal awarded to him in 1912 to mark his 40th anniversary of service as a constable.
    Gerrit Heersink in 1912, on the occasion of his 40th anniversary in office as a constable in Aalten.
    Gerrit Heersink in 1912, on the occasion of his 40th anniversary in office as a constable in Aalten.
    Gerrit Heersink reading a newspaper in the guardroom at Aalten town hall, with his dog Caesar at his feet – A gift from the municipal staff, 1912.
    Gerrit Heersink reading a newspaper in the guardroom at Aalten town hall, with his dog Caesar at his feet – A gift from the municipal staff, 1912.

    Sources

  • The Ecclesiastical Situation in Aalten

    The Ecclesiastical Situation in Aalten

    De Graafschapbode, 19 March 1887

    Every now and then, the newspapers report fragments about the withdrawal of Gangel with his consistory, of suspension, dismissal, the keeping of church doors closed, riot, soldiers, hussars, etc., etc., and with all that, the matter continues at a snail’s pace. When will this change? One says it will remain so, another that the church may well remain closed for another 6 weeks, a third speaks of compromising, but despite all that: no progress is made. What can be done about this?

    A clear explanation of the matters, decisive action, indeed taking possession of the church. All well and good, but show us the way to achieve this. Well, through this writing, we wish to attempt to set you on the right track and point out the path the congregation must take.

    Mr. Gangel, former minister of the Dutch Reformed Congregation in Aalten, has seceded with his consistory, in other words, shaken off the Synodal yoke, as His Honor is pleased to call it. Previously, a part of the consistory, namely 3 persons who also functioned as churchwardens, resigned as members of the consistory, but retained their positions as churchwardens until the classical board, acting in the capacity of the consistory, suspended and later dismissed said gentlemen from their membership as members of the Dutch Reformed Church in Aalten.

    It goes without saying that when someone has been dismissed as a member of the church, there can no longer be any question of being allowed or able to retain the management of the church, etc. After all, churchwardens are not owners of the church and its assets, but are merely elected by the notables as managers; see: General Regulations on the management of ecclesiastical assets and funds of the Reformed congregations in the Netherlands and the supervision thereof: 1 Oct. 1870.

    These churchwardens are currently preventing the ministry of lawful ministers who must appear before the congregation, thereby withholding gifts from the poor and effectively preventing the collection of offerings for the maintenance of public worship.

    For two Sundays now, the congregation has come to a closed church door, and twice lawful ministers have been prevented from performing their duties. We admire the calmness of the congregation in this matter, but we cannot guarantee that this will remain so for much longer. The parties are becoming increasingly sharp and hostile toward one another; it causes strife between members of the same household, and there is no longer any talk of brotherhood.

    Who is the cause of this? None other than these churchwardens and the grieving consistory with their leader, Gangel.

    But does the congregation have no rights? Certainly. The right rests with the members of the congregation, in the following manner: The lawful voting members elect the notables, the notables elect the churchwardens, and these take upon themselves the management. Where the churchwardens have now resigned of their own accord, or have been dismissed or removed from office, the election of new churchwardens must proceed without delay.

    In the case of Aalten, the congregation will first have to supplement or completely renew the list of notables, and these new notables will appoint the Messrs. churchwardens. These new churchwardens take over the management from the old ones, and matters are settled. In the event of resistance to this lawful order, one can turn to the classical board and further to the provincial board.

    If all this is of no avail, as seems to be the case in Aalten, and the dismissed churchwardens keep the doors of the communal property closed, then the members simply act as the rightful claimants and take possession of the church. By this, we do not mean to conquer the church by force, for there is no question of conquest when one is the rightful owner, but one should then call upon the judicial (civil) power. A church must not remain closed to the people on regular days of worship as long as there are churchgoers and lawful ministers to attend. See further on this the Church Regulations of 1 October 1870.

    Old St Helen's Church, Aalten (1952)
    Dutch Reformed Church in Aalten
    15 hussars to Aalten – Zutphensche Courant, 14 March 1887
    Zutphensche Courant, 14 March 1887
    50 infantrymen to Aalten – Zutphensche Courant, 14 March 1887
    Zutphensche Courant, 14 March 1887
    Tubantia, 16 March 1887
    Tubantia, 16 March 1887
    De Tijd, 16 March 1887
    De Tijd, 16 March 1887
    Secession, soldiers and hussars in Aalten – Bataviaasch Handelsblad, 19 April 1887
    Bataviaasch Handelsblad, 19 April 1887

    Sources

    • De Graafschapbode, 19 March 1887 (Delpher)
  • Fight in the Prison

    Fight in the Prison

    On 27 February 1880, a man who had served his prison sentence in Bocholt was escorted by a gendarme to the Dutch border near Aalten. Thanks to the excellent cooperation between the Dutch and Prussian border police, he was duly received at the border crossing by rijksveldwachter (national constable) Schaars Prins from Aalten, to be handed over to the Dutch justice system, which also had a bone to pick with him.

    Prison – Prinsenstraat 40, Aalten
    The former prison on Prinsenstraat in Aalten

    The transport to Aalten took place by carriage. Upon arrival there, the man was taken to the house of detention. Everything proceeded quietly and orderly, until an individual who – as it later turned out – had followed the carriage at a trot, entered the prison.

    When asked what he was doing there, a life-and-death struggle suddenly ensued between the prisoner and his friend on one side, and Schaars Prins, municipal constable Heersink, and the coincidentally present municipal messenger Gerhard Rots on the other.

    After a few truncheons had been shattered across the bodies of the attacking rogues, Rots dealt out several blows with a type of frying pan, which was bent completely out of shape as a result. In this fight, the constables sustained only a few scratches and bruises, but the stout-hearted Rots was actually bitten on his nose, his hand, and in a certain hind part of his body.

    Schaars Prins, who a few years earlier had been decorated by the German Emperor following an encounter with criminals in Aalten – who, having escaped from the prison in Bocholt, were nabbed by that moustachioed officer – held his ground firmly once again, yet would have been cut down with his own sabre had it not been for Rots.

    In the end, all turned out well – the audacious rescue attempt failed, and the friends were put under lock and key. They were transported to Zutphen to have their case heard there and, undoubtedly, to receive their just deserts.

    Sources

    • Zutphense Courant, 1 March 1880 (Delpher)
    • Zutphense Courant, 2 March 1880 (Delpher)