Warsenhoeck Museum

Museum Warsenhoeck in the Nature Quarter has been located in the Geinoord 11 farmhouse in Nieuwegein since 1990. The museum is managed and operated by the Historische Kring Nieuwegein. The museum is dedicated to the cultural history of Nieuwegein, the former municipalities of Jutphaas, Vreeswijk and the medieval town of Geyne. Since 2010, it has had the official status of a provisionally recognised museum.

History

• On 1 July 1971, the city of Nieuwegein was founded. This saw the dissolution of the municipalities of Jutphaas and Vreeswijk. These had existed since the Middle Ages. The new town was named after the old settlement in this area, Geyne. Old traces of this are still visible. The origins of Gein, for instance, lie on the spot where Museum Warsenhoeck is located today.
• After a thorough renovation in the 1980s, the building in the old farmhouse Geinoord 11 was completed in 1989. The museum itself opened its doors in April 1990. When designing the museum, the note Historical Museum Nieuwegein formed the starting point. The historical character of the farm is still clearly visible and this was also taken into account when the museum was designed. For instance, the first floor displays utensils and tools from the farm.
• The museum provides an overview of Nieuwegein's history. The ground floor focuses on the history of the villages of Jutphaas, Vreeswijk and Geyne. This permanent exhibition, also called the timeline, goes back in time some 300,000 years. The museum focuses its activities mainly on young people and tries to explain a lot at this timeline. Among other things, visitors can get to know objects from the Jidden-Paleolithic (15,000 - 200,000 years ago) made in Jutphaas, as well as the Bronze Age Sword of Jutphaas. There are also many photos, prints and utensils on display on the first floor. Moving images also bring history to life and provide visitors with additional explanations. There is a themed exhibition about three times a year. Various utensils and tools can also be viewed here, objects that were used on the farm from the 18th to the 20th century. On the second floor, the former hayloft, there are changing exhibitions by amateur artists from Nieuwegein.
• Museum Warsenhoeck has its own collection and a collection manager. The management and operation of the museum are entirely in the hands of volunteers of the Historische Kring Nieuwegein (HKN). The HKN's Exhibitions Working Group determines and organises the exhibitions. For various exhibitions, the museum also uses objects from the collections of other museums or from private collections.
• On 25 September 2013, the museum received official museum recognition. This replaced the provisional recognition of 20 December 2010. Museum Warsenhoeck is the first museum in Nieuwegein to be registered according to the new standards. Official registration and recognition means that the museum is managing and furnishing the museum properly. This also allows it to attract more loans for setting up exhibitions.

NOTES. The Vreeswijk Museum has ceased to exist and transferred most of its collection to Museum Warsenhoeck. Many items typically belonging to Vreeswijk and related to inland navigation (characteristic of Vreeswijk) will be on the Museum shipyardcan be found. The exhibition space of the Museumwerf will be redesigned for this purpose. Parts of the collection are also likely to be displayed at other places in the city.

Become a member Historical Circle Nieuwegein
You can also become a member of the Historical Circle Nieuwegein with numerous benefits. These include an extensive activity programme of lectures, excursions, film and slide nights (as soon as this is possible again) and you will receive the quarterly magazine Cronyck de Geyn. Membership costs just €19.50 a year. And when you become a member, you will also receive the book "Castles and Estates in "Oud-Nieuwegein". More information on membership can be found here.

Source and more information
* Wikipedia
* Historic Circle Nieuwegein