In 1650, a merchant from Amsterdam named Nicolaas Luyders established a blue dye factory. This factory stood on the very site where Villa Beeckzangh now stands. The blue dye produced here likely supplied the many bleacheries thriving in Kennemerland during that century. Villa Beeckzangh wasn’t always called that, though. The building transitioned from a factory to a residence around 1709. It wasn’t until 1876 that Daniel Adriaan Koenen, the owner at the time, gave the house its melodic name, “Beeckzangh”. He drew inspiration from a poem written by Joost van den Vondel (1587-1679) about the Scheijbeeck, the very stream that flows past Villa Beeckzangh and the estate across from it, also named Scheijbeeck. Villa Beeckzangh’s connection to poetry doesn’t end there. In 1889, the renowned Dutch poet Herman Gorter began writing his most famous poem, “Mei” within the walls of Villa Beeckzangh. Another shift occurred in 1903, when Johann Willem Arend Koster, a diamond cleaver from Amsterdam, acquired Villa Beeckzangh. The house and surrounding land were then used for growing and storing flower bulbs. To this day, the Koster family remains the proud owners of Villa Beeckzangh.
Villa Beeckzangh
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