{"id":1316,"date":"2022-03-04T07:25:51","date_gmt":"2022-03-04T07:25:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koesterdoel.be\/index.php\/2022\/03\/04\/de-haven\/"},"modified":"2022-05-06T10:35:42","modified_gmt":"2022-05-06T10:35:42","slug":"de-haven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koesterdoel.be\/en\/index.php\/2022\/03\/04\/de-haven\/","title":{"rendered":"Harbor"},"content":{"rendered":"

The harbor was built in 1614, at the same time as the village. Originally fishing boats and cargo ships were moored there to transport peat, grain and other agricultural products from the polder. The harbor is one of the last tidal harbors on the Scheldt and therefore still has a sluice basin and a flood defense gate. A quarantine service was established in the port in the 19th century. At the end of the 19th century, the port was the engine for emerging tourism. Shipping company Flandria was founded in Doel. Since then, the quay has been a meeting place for day trippers, fishermen and other skippers, seal hunters, painters and quarantine doctors. The harbor is also a memorial site. The British war memorial and the annual Scheldt consecration testify to this.<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u00a9 Bruno Stevenheydens<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Cog from Doel<\/h3>\n

The Deurganckdock is located right next to Doel, behind the buffer. The name Deurganck refers to the trench that was located here until the end of the 20th century. In the Middle Ages it was probably a passage for ships that could avoid tolls in this way.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

During the excavation work for the construction of the Deurganckdock, the cranes encountered a virtually intact shipwreck in 2000. The ship is a medieval cog. She is 21 m long, 7 m wide, and has a preserved height of approximately 2.5 m. Cogs were seaworthy freighters that carried their bulk cargo (grain, salt, wood, peat, brick, … ) on coastal shipping from the Hanseatic city to Hanseatic City. Another smaller cog was found and the wharf of a medieval fishing village. The Cog from Doel is the largest and best preserved of its kind at European level.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Excavation of the Cog. <\/span><\/span>\u00a9 Kristof Pieters<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Ferry service<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/h3>\n

The ferry service between Doel and Lillo is centuries old. Until the beginning of the 20th century, the crossing was ensured by a rowing boat. From the dike of the Scheldt in Lillo, they checked to see if there were customers waiting in Doel or Liefkenshoek. The innkeeper of the only caf\u00e9 on the dike in Liefkenshoek pulled a basket up from a mast to warn the ferrymen on the other side. With the opening of the Liefkenshoek tunnel, the daily Lillo-Doel ferry service was reduced to a weekend service. After the decision in 1998 to have Doel disappeared, the ferry service was further reduced until it finally disappeared in 2010.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Flandria<\/b><\/h3>\n

The shipping company Flandria has long been a familiar name in passenger and freight transport on the Scheldt. It started with a service by F. Dreesen, who soon became a partner with Eugeen Van Marcke in 1921. The following year, the Flandria was purchased, a 45-ton steamer, built in 1907. The ship carried passengers, but also small freight and parcels transported. Until after the Second World War, the Flandria ensured a loyal service with a daily departure from Doel at half past six and a return from Antwerp at 3 pm. The company was given the name ‘the Interprovincial Stoombootdiensten Antwerpen-Doel’. This was later changed to ‘Flandria’. For the Antwerp resident, Doel was the Blankenberge of today. Strolling on the dike, drinking a coffee or beer in one of the 30 establishments in the village, catching crabs, eating shrimp: it was the ideal family trip.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Mooring place Flandria<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fish and seals<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

In 1825 there were six sailing ships and sixteen sailing stallions in Doel. Until the 20th century, fishing boats departed from here and freshly cooked shrimp was brought ashore. The lower reaches of the Scheldt were still very rich in fish and there was a large stock of seals.<\/span><\/span>
\nSeals were hunted by boat by hunter notables. In Doel, the carcasses were brought ashore and poached for fur. The tear found its way to the farmers who grease the leather of their horse harness with it. The bacon was ideal wagon grease. The carcasses that were thrown back into the Scheldt were a feast for the crabs. In the meantime, the seals on the Scheldt are protected and the population is recovering.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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Ships were dismantled and the wood put up for sale as renovation material for barns and other buildings.<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Quarantine service<\/span><\/span><\/h3>\n

In 1843, the Quarantine Service of Doel was established. This service supervised the crews of the incoming vessels to Antwerp to determine whether there were no contagious diseases on board. In 1897 a guard house was built on the dike. From there, the first telephone line from Doel left for doctor Antoon and on to his colleague, doctor Flahou. The service operated with boat rowers until 1897, later replaced by a steamer. In 1945 the service in Doel was discontinued and transferred to Antwerp. The guardhouse was sold and the little boat with the yellow band around the fireplace disappeared from the harbor area.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

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