Het Holtslag kasteel / The Holtslag estate

Date: 23 Aug 1401 to 21 May 1949
Location: Toldijk, Steenderen, Gelderland, Netherlands
Surname/tag: Holtslag

History of the Holtslag estate

The first mention of the name 'Holtslag' is in the Land Registers of the Counts of Limburg-Stirum, who were also the Lords of Bronckhorst. The excerpt dates to the 23rd of August, 1401, and it says: Dat Halve Holtslach szo dat met synen alingen toebehorige in de kerspel van Steinre gelegen, which translates to something along the the lines of That half of the Holtslag along with its territories belonging (located in?) to the parish of Steenderen. The estate was divided between two brothers - Vrederic and Harmen Dericsz van Steinre. At the time, the castle, more likely a country house, consisted of 400 hectares.

It was next sold by Deryck van Steinre, to a man named Deryck Heyinck. Deryck passed away in 1442, and the estate passed to his brother, Aernt Heyinck. The Heyinck family continued to live in the estate or country house for generations. This is evidenced by the 1508 mention of an Otto Heyinck, a judge in Steenderen, living on the estate. The estate also came to be known as 'Guet Heynck'. About 1630, Anna Catherine Heyinck, Lady of the Holtslag 'kasteel', married Jacob Schimmelpennink van der Oye, whose family already owned the castles t' Velde and Suideras (in Vierakker) by 1662, and he became owner of the Holtslag estate through the marriage.

In the meantime, 'het Wiel' and 'het Rauwgoor' were built on / added to the estate. Through a Dr. Thomas Loges, however, the estate came into the van Molenschot family, whose family owned and lived on 'het Holtslag' from about 1659 to 1705.

On the 22nd of February, 1647, the Pond-scattingen, similar to a real estate tax, was recorded by the settlers Reinier Dercksen and Arend van Til. These documents have a valuable insight into what the Holtslag lands consisted of, which was: 't Holtslach met het Rougoor: Jr. van Winshem, groot behalven hoven end boomgaerden, volgens deselven overgegeven handt 14 margen end 3 sch. tis end tiendvrij. Weijdelandt 17 beestweíjdens, de schaer 3 dlr. met huis hof end boomgaert. 300-0-0.

The estate once again changed hands on the 5th of June, 1705, when Colonel Johan van Molenschot and his wife, Sappina van Ayvla, gave permission to Johan van Munster, mayor of Zutphen, to live on the castle and manage the estate. His daughter, Theodora Margaretha, married Johan Otto van Hasselt, who succeeded his father-in-law as mayor of Zutphen, and also became judge or alderman of Zutphen.

But Johan died in 1748, and his son Alexander inherited the estate in 1772. He apparently did not claim his inheritance, however, as 'het Rauwgoor' and the Hertenplaats went up for sale at the Marke meeting of 25 August, 1789. Theodora van Munster-van Hasselt applied for these, as she was still the owner of 'het Wiel'. Her request was denied.

The largest that the Holtslag estate came to be was in 1806. H.W. Rasch's list of buildings in Steenderen, dated November 9, 1806, shows the following buildings as being owned by Theodora and as part of 'het Holtslag':

• 178 - 't Erve Borriskamp (on today's Beekstraat)
• 206 - 't Erve Hartenplaats (on today's Schiphorsterstraat)
• 207 - 't Erve Venneplaats (no longer exists, used to be opposite the Kalverdijk)
• 208 - 't Holtslag (the estate itself, which no longer stands, and on what is now 3 Holtslagweg)
• 209 - Stinen-Jansplaats (no longer exists, was opposite the Schooldijk)
• 241 - 't Rougoor (on today's Holtslagweg)
• 242 - 't Erve 't Wiel (on today's Bakermarksedijk)

This was eventually split up, however, as t' Wiel was sold to Hendrik Kretschmer on the 8th of Septemer, 1826, from part of the estate of Gijsbert van Hasselt, the youngest son of Johan and Theodora. This was, in turn, purchased by the widow B.J. Spekkink-Konink for her son Martinus, on the 29th of May 1855.

The cadastral map from 1832 - as well as the civil registry from the French period - gives us a further picture of 't Holtslag. The Venneplaats or D'Veenboer, as this farm is called in 1806, as well as the Stinen-Jansplaats disappeared. The Werkbaashuis has replaced the latter, about 100m next to it. An unsightly extension with a separate outer door had been built on this Werkbaashuis, which was called the 'Heerenkamer'. This room was used once a year to collect the rent, as the elderly still remember. On April 8, 1943, this building burned down as a result of a bombardment, as did that of Hanskamp. Since about 1880, the Werkbaashuis has been inhabited by the Arentsen family, who came from the 'Grote Russer', as the son of Arent Arendsen and Geesken Aalderink. They lived there for three generations.

The next owner of the estate was Joost Jan op ten Noort. As the owner of 't Holtslag in 1832, op ten Noort owned all plots. At that time, plots 60 and 61, pieces of land along the west side of Hoogstraat and up to the 't Wiel farm, were sold to Bornhof. They are not added to the 'Roodheuvel', but leased out in parts, after deforestation took place at a later date during the job creation in the crisis years 1935-1940.

The 'Hartenplaats' on the current Schiphorsterstraat, where 'Olymolen' stands in 1806, is next to the farm in 1832. It is an oil mill, worked by a horse. The 'Borriskamp' is then under ownership of the heir, Willem Frederik Louis Christiaan van Rappard. Several plots between the Kalverdijk and the now Holtslagweg/Hoogstraat were owned by the owner of the 'Bloemendaal' farm, Derk Evekink, a name that is still known today as a foundation in Zutphen. Evert Jan Bisschop van de Rosmulder and Hendrik Arend Hulsteyn van de Til own the rest of that side of the Hoogstraat with a few other names.

The estate was transferred to van Rappard around 1835. He inherited it when he married Elisabeth op ten Noort, daughter of Joost. He tried to repair it, as it evidently was dilapidated and in poor condition, doing this by selling some pastures and courtyards. Unfortunately, the damage was too extensive to fix completely. He described the Holtslag estate as such: Het Holtslag, located on the road to Hengelo: An old gentleman's house, well equipped with fine alleys and woody plants, but now people know that the place where the house once stood is still haunted. Haunted, huh?

The estate, since then, became a lot smaller. In 1837, three builder's houses and an employer's house were combined, and one meadow and four seats in the Reformed Church of Steenderen were sold. The auction was conducted by notary Mr. H. Beker, on behalf of the family of the highly well-born Sir Mr. Jacob Gabriel van Rappard, who lived on the 'Rosel' in Groot Dochteren at the time. He married Constance Delechille in 1894. The 'Borriskamp' is bought by the tenant G.J. Memelink. At a later date he moves to the 'Til', through a marriage with the widow Hulsteyn, born D.H. Harenberg.

Jacob G. van Rappard virtually renovated the entire estate. On account of his asthma, he wanted 'higher ceilings' in the building, and he passed away at 'het Ross' in 1913. Het Ross still exists, now known as 'de Vluchtheuvel'.

Unfortunately, the Holtslag estate had suffered too much damage and was costing too much to maintain, and it was demolished in April of 1856. The 1868 and 1890 maps show the wooded areas of the Holtslag estate, and clearly says 'Holtslag (demolished)'. Willem van Rappard's renovations revealed how much damage the building contained, to the point where is was irreparable.

The castle grass and pond were known under the name 'de Pampert'. The area was filled with waste from the Toldijk Co-operative Dairy during the years 1920-1940. The last wooded section of the estate was sold on the 14th of October, 1915, and the last house was sold on the 21st of May, 1949. This sale arks the end of the Holtslag estate. All that remains now is the Holtslagweg, between the Hoogstraat and Bakersmarksedijk.