Overview
The history of Café ’t Noorden begins in 1823. At the site of the present building there was then a house with a yard and orchard. On the other side of Koningsweg stood a corn mill with its yard but without a dwelling.
Thirty-four-year-old Jan Hendrik Weenink moved into the house in 1856 and worked at the mill. At his request the building was altered in 1866. Part of the arable land became a ‘recreation ground’, according to the municipal archive. This marked the beginning of the playground that remains part of ’t Noorden today.
Weenink also started a café here; in 1870 the municipal register records his occupation as publican. The Weenink family left on 19 September 1876. Thirty-year-old Engelbartus Simmelink from Winterswijk became the new publican and opened Café Simmelink. After his death in 1888, his widow Johanna Gesiena Simmelink-Nijenhuis took over. After her death in 1895, their daughters Janna Willemina and Janna Aleida Simmelink continued the business.
‘t Noorden van Aalten
On 16 April 1918 Bernardus Heersink of Winterswijk took over the café. Around this time the business also became known as ’t Noorden, referring to the north of Aalten. Jan Bertus Keijzer succeeded Heersink in 1948, followed in 1957 by Abraham Grevink, who died in 1976. His widow S.W. Grevink-Piepers and the Grevink and Prinsen families continued the business. Many weddings and celebrations were held here, while the café, playground and soft ice cream attracted numerous visitors. They ran the business until 1997.
Martin and Monique Hüning took over in 1997. Under their management the function rooms were expanded and in 2011 the restaurant was converted into a pancake restaurant. They also expanded the catering facilities. The tall slide eventually had to be removed because of decay, new regulations and the risk of collapse, but a small train from Buesink’s Modelspoor Panorama provided new entertainment in the playground. Their son Wesley and daughter-in-law Nita Hüning joined the business in 2015.
Anno 2025 omschrijft de website van Het Noorden zichzelf als grand café met eet- speel- en biergarden, met als levensmotto: “Vier ‘t leven!”
Residents
Population register 1823-1838
Janna Berendina Mebelink-Morrien (Aalten, 19-10-1755)
Next residents:
Jakobus Lammers (Winterswijk, 31-10-1783), miller
Catharina Sikkink (Winterswijk, 15-05-1784)
Population register 1838-1850
Jacobus Lammers (Winterswijk, 31-10-1783), miller
Catharina Sikkink (Winterswijk, 15-05-1784)
Population register 1850-1860
Jacobus Lammers (Winterswijk, 31-10-1783), miller
Catharina Sikkink (Winterswijk, 15-05-1784)
They left for North America on 15 August 1854.
Next residents:
Jan Hendrik Weenink (Winterswijk, 24-06-1822), miller
Antonetta Gesina Schepers (Aalten, 11-10-1821)
Population register 1860-1870
Jan Hendrik Weenink (Winterswijk, 24-06-1822), miller
Antonetta Gesina Schepers (Aalten, 11-10-1821)
Population register 1870-1880
Jan Hendrik Weenink (Winterswijk, 24-06-1822), publican enz.
Antonetta Gesina Schepers (Aalten, 11-10-1821)
They moved to Aalten 92 (now Hogestraat 41).
Next residents:
Engelbartus Simmelink (Meddo, 05-01-1846), publican
Johanna Gesiena Nijenhuis (Winterswijk, 31-05-1839)
Population register 1880-1890
Engelbartus Simmelink (Meddo, 05-01-1846), publican
Johanna Gesiena Nijenhuis (Winterswijk, 31-05-1839)
Population register 1890-1900
Johanna Gesiena Nijenhuis (Winterswijk, 31-05-1839), tapster
Next residents, daughter:
Janna Willemina Simmelink (Meddo, 15-02-1871), tapster
Population register 1900-1910
Derk Willem Hakstege (Aalten, 16-10-1872), booterkneeder bij de coöp. zuivelfabr.
Janna Willemina Simmelink (Meddo, 15-02-1871), tapster / herbergierster baas
Population register 1910-1920
Derk Willem Hakstege (Aalten, 16-10-1872), fabr. labourer
Janna Willemina Simmelink (Meddo, 15-02-1871)
Next residents:
Bernadus Heersink (Aalten, 25-09-1877), bricklayer / houthandelaar / café proprietor
Bertha Geerdes (Brinkheurne, 14-05-1884)
Address directory 1934
Aalten C311 > Lichtenvoordsestraatweg 40
Address directory 1967
Lichtenvoordsestraatweg 44
A. Grevink
J.W. Grevink
Owners
Overview is niet volledig.
| Year | Parcel | Owner | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1832 | I-63 | E. Roerdink e.c., farmer | 500 m² house & yard |
| 1841 | I-63 | Jan Willem Veldhuis, farmer | 500 m² house & yard |
| 1863 | I-63 | Abraham van Eerden, innkeeper | 500 m² house & yard |
| 1866 | I-2716 I-2717 I-2718 | Abraham van Eerden e.c., innkeeper | 180 m² terrein van vermaak 70 m² bergplaats & yard 480 m² house & yard |
| 1874 | I-3160 I-3161 I-3162 | Jan Hendrik Weenink, miller & publican | 47 m² house & yard 43 m² house & yard 802 m² house & yard |
| 1883 | I-3808 | Engelbarts Simmelink e.c., steenbaker | 892 m² house & yard |
| 1906 | I-3808 | Derk Willem Hakstege, innkeeper | 892 m² house & yard |
| 1916 | I-3808 | Albert Johan Frederik Kammeijer, steenkolenhandelaar & café proprietor | 892 m² house & yard |
| 1920 | I-3808 | Bernardus Heersink, innkeeper & farmer | 892 m² house & yard |
| 1927 | I-6187 | Bernardus Heersink, innkeeper & farmer | 2500 m² house and garden |
| 1935 | I-6725 | Bernardus Heersink, innkeeper & farmer | 3.220 m² house, café and garden |