Peest is a village in the Netherlands and it is part of the Noordenveld municipality in Drenthe. The Airport Norg used to be located near the village.
Peest | |
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Village | |
![]() Westerveen near Peest | |
Coordinates: 53°3′37″N 6°29′57″E | |
Country | Netherlands |
Province | Drenthe |
Municipality | Noordenveld |
Area | |
• Total | 4.94 km2 (1.91 sq mi) |
Elevation | 10 m (30 ft) |
Population (2021)[1] | |
• Total | 145 |
• Density | 29/km2 (76/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Postal code | 9334[1] |
Dialing code | 0592 |
Peest is an esdorp which developed around the heath.[3] It was first mentioned around 1300 as "apud Peest". The etymology of the name is unclear.[4] The farms which were constructed prior to 1850 are parallel to the communal pasture while the later farms are at right angles.[5] In 1840, the village had 80 inhabitants.[3]
The hunebed (dolmen) D5 [nl] is located of the road to Zeijen.[3]
In the Summer of 1940, the German authorities started to construct Fliegerhorst Norg near Peest. 2,500 workers were brought in to built an airport with three runways on a 280 hectares (690 acres) terrain. The airport suffered from serious drainage problems and was hardly ever used.[6] A large pond was made in the centre to solve the drainage problem, but to no avail. The road around the pond was named Hitlerring.[7]
Even though the airport had operational problems, it was mined in April 1945 by French paratroopers. After the war, the airport was used a dump site for ammunition. Between 1999 and 2011, there was de-fusion operation to remove the 200,000 pieces of ammunition from the site.[6]
The airport seemingly resembles a swastika from the air, however that is a visual illusion. The Germans even painted to roads in order to obscure the airport from view.[7]
Two entries
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Peest. |
Populated places in the municipality of Noordenveld | |
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Towns |
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Villages | |
Hamlets |
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List of cities, towns and villages in Drenthe |