Fochteloo

Fochteloo (West Frisian: De Fochtel) is a village with around 400 inhabitants^[3] in the municipality of Ooststellingwerf in southeastern Friesland in the Netherlands.

Fochteloo De Fochtel
Village
Welcome to Fochteloo
Location in Ooststellingwerf municipality
Fochteloo Location in the Netherlands Show map of Friesland Fochteloo Fochteloo (Netherlands) Show map of Netherlands
Coordinates: 52°59′33″N 6°20′5″E
Country	Netherlands
Province	Friesland
Municipality	Ooststellingwerf
Area [1]
• Total	19.77 km2 (7.63 sq mi)
Elevation [2]	7 m (23 ft)
Population  (2021)[1]
• Total	350
• Density	18/km2 (46/sq mi)
Postal code	8428[1]
Dialing code	0516

History

The village was first mentioned in 1408 as Fyochtelo, and probably means moist forest.^[4] The church was demolished in 1832, but the bell tower with two bells has remained. From 1908 until 2008, there was a chapel in the dairy factory. In 1840, Fochteloo was home to 163 people.^[5]

In 1942, Camp Ybenheer was established as a Jewish forced labour camp. On Yom Kippur 1942 (2–3 October), all 215 labourers were moved to Westerbork transit camp from where they were transported to Auschwitz and Sobibor. After the war, the camp was used for South Moluccan refugees. In 2002, a memorial was placed at the former camp grounds.^[6][7]

Geography

There is a nature reserve located between Fochteloo and Veenhuizen, called Fochteloërveen [nl].