Heemkundig Museum Brugwachtershuis

Small local history museum in the former bridge keeper’s cottage of Lanklaar, with objects about the village and the Zuid-Willemsvaart.

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About the museum

The Brugwachtershuisje in Lanklaar, a sub-municipality of Dilsen-Stokkem, was built around 1842 as a home for the bridge keeper. He operated the swing bridge over a branch of the canal, the Zuid-Willemsvaart. For a time the house also served as a café. The job of bridge keeper disappeared in 1935, and the building is now protected heritage.

Since 1983 the cottage has been home to the Geschied- en Heemkundige Kring De Vreedsel (history and local history society). In 1986 the building was restored with support from the King Baudouin Foundation. The society keeps objects and documents here that show how the villagers lived.

Among the items you can see are tow ropes with which inland vessels were pulled along the canal, a ship’s anchor, an old chest, old postcards and school items, a klepperklap (a wooden clapper that used to call people to church around Easter), marble thank-you plaques and the preserved banner of the local brass band. The museum also covers the history of the Zuid-Willemsvaart and the old canal.

Highlights

Former bridge keeper’s cottage from 1842 on the old canal
Tow ropes and a ship’s anchor from the era of inland shipping
Objects and documents about village life in Lanklaar
Banner of the Vlaamsche Jongens Harmonie Lanklaar
The story of the Zuid-Willemsvaart

Permanent exhibition

Tentoonstelling in het Brugwachtershuisje – Objects and documents about village life in Lanklaar and the history of the canal, such as tow ropes, a ship’s anchor and school items.