Melkheul (2000)

The Melkheul in 1910.

This archaeological investigation at the Melkheul, carried out by Hollandia ArchaeologistsThis is exceptional in several respects. It offers a rare and complete picture of bourgeois material culture in Gorinchem from the sixteenth to the twentieth century, a period that has long remained archaeologically underexposed. In doing so, it underscores the great significance of this project. Despite limited resources, technical challenges, and far from ideal conditions, an important chapter in the industrial development of Gorinchem has been uncovered.

In the spectrum of finds, the transition from artisanal industry and small-scale production in the 17th is visible.^de in 18^de century to the large-scale, industrial production that characterizes our modern consumer society. The finds reveal a growing diversity of goods and needs, along with changing production techniques and rapidly successive technological innovations of the Early Modern period.

Multifunctional use

The versatile use of the Melkheul throughout the centuries is evident from its topographical location, archival sources, and archaeological finds. Until the end of the 16th^de In the 16th century, the Melkheul lay outside the city walls and the canal formed a connection with the Schelluinse Vliet, whereby the waterway enabled the transport of goods to and from the northern hinterland and milk barges could reach the city. Towards the end of the 16th^de In the 18th century, the city expanded, the canal came to lie within the walls, and it acquired functions as a sewer, sluice, and inner harbor; archival documents show that it was additionally used as a drinking water supply and a swimming facility.

Detail map by Jacob van Deventer (1558).

The quay walls or revetments of the canal, as well as other traces from the earliest phase (16^de century), were not found in the excavation pits. These remains likely disappeared during later construction and dredging work, or any remaining fragments are probably still located in the soil outside the current quay wall. The existing quay wall was presumably built in the 17th century.^de laid out in the century and subsequently regularly modified; from the 19th century^de In the century, archival sources repeatedly report restoration work.

At the deepest level in the excavation pits lay a brown clay layer from the period when outside water could still flow into the Melkheul at high tide. Within this layer are several finds from the second half of the 16th century.^de done in the 17th century, alongside more numerous material from the 17th^de in 18^de century, which together form a diffuse “noise” of remnants from this period. Due to the dredging operations and the flushing of the canal, the majority of the material will have been removed, as accumulated silt both obstructed navigation and caused the discharge of polluted water to stagnate.

The Melkpad with the Melkheul on the left in front of the Hotel-Restaurant Metropole.

Filled in 1930

From 1819, the open connection to the moat was replaced by a narrower culvert, which worsened water flow and caused waste to accumulate in the canal. Around 1850, this worsened after the filling in of the small inner harbor at the Melkpad. Despite flushing and regular dredging, the canal remained a stinking open sewer, as a large part of the city's drainage discharged into it. Due to changing consumption patterns and growing industrial production, the amount of imperishable household waste increased in the 19th century.^de century further on, which led to a black ditch filling. When the Melkheul was filled in in 1930, this layer was covered with sand, preserving the ditch filling as a time capsule: preserved household waste from the time of the Industrial Revolution, reflecting the rapidly increasing variety of products on the eve of the 20th century.
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