Zoutman Fortress
The Fort Zoutman is a historic military fortifications on the island of Aruba .
history
The fortress on Paarden Baai in Oranjestad , built by the Dutch army between 1796 and 1798, is the oldest building on the island by the Dutch. The fort was built to protect the port and also to repel attacks from the land side. In 1834, additional cell blocks with loopholes were built on the western and eastern fortress walls.
The fort was named after Rear Admiral Johan Arnold Zoutman . During the Second Coalition War , a British attack on Aruba was repulsed in 1799.
The tower was later built on the west side of the fortress at the request of Lieutenant Governor JH Ferguson. In 1866 the construction of the tower in the fortress began. The finished tower was named after King Wilhelm III. of the Netherlands and inaugurated on its birthday. On February 19, 1868 the beacon for seafaring burned on the top of the tower for the first time. Since that time, the tower bell has been rung every hour. The bell was made by the Koninklijke Klokkengieterij Petit & Fritsen . The original kerosene lamp in the beacon was later replaced by an acetylene lamp and in 1930 the beacon was finally electrified.
In 1909 surveying work was carried out on the island on behalf of the Dutch government by the sea captain J. Lens and the fortress first appeared on the topographic map of Aruba in 1912. From 1920 to 1928, the lieutenant governor's office was housed in Fort Zoutman. Over the years the tower has also served as a clock tower, courtroom, library, post office, tax office and was the first headquarters of the Aruban Police (Korps Politie Aruba).
The tower has not been an official illuminated shipping sign since 1963.
today
The fortress and tower were fully restored between 1974 and 1980 and have housed the Aruba History Museum since reopening on September 15, 1983.
literature
- Pierer's Universal Lexikon , Volume 19, Page 703 ( Zoutmann ). Altenburg 1865
Web links
Coordinates: 12 ° 31 '4.1 " N , 70 ° 2' 8.5" W.