Verhildersum Estate

A special collection
In honour of her coronation queen Wilhelmina (1898) was given a collection of traditional costumes from all over the country. Much to the disappointment of the donors Wilhelmina didn’t hang the collection in her own wardrobe at palace Het Loo, but deposited it in the Rijksmuseum. In 1916 it was transferred to Open Air Museum Arnhem because this museum focused on folk art. Unfortunately almost the entire collection was lost during the battle of Arnhem in 1944.

When Queen Wilhelmina’s golden jubilee approached, once again the idea arose to present her with a traditional national costume collection. The Royal Commissioners were assigned to organize this in their respective provinces. In Groningen a committee chaired by Mrs. W. Evers-Dijkhuizen set to work. A particularly diligent member of this committee was Mrs. Clevering, whose knowledge of fashion and costumes was extensive. She would later on become the pivotal figure in what came to be known as the Groninger Dracht. People donated much more clothing than was required for the anniversary gift. At Mrs. Clevering’s initiative the surplus was given to the Ommelander Museum for Agriculture and Trade - now the Foundation Borg Verhildersum - in the early sixties.