HISTORY

Madurodam was officially opened on 2 July 1952. This amusement park has a very interesting history. It was established for two reasons: as a war monument and as a charity foundation. The joint initiators were Mrs. B. Boon-van der Starp and Mr. and Mrs. J.M.L. Maduro.  

Mrs. Boon-van der Starp
Mrs. Boon-van der Starp was a member of the Society for the Support of the Dutch Student Sanatorium  in Laren. The sanatorium was founded in 1947 and offered students suffering from tuberculosis the opportunity to recover, while at the same time continuing with their studies. The costs of construction and patient care were high. Therefore the initiators were looking for a way of acquiring financial support. Mrs. Boon-van der Starp took the English miniature city in Beaconsfield as an example. Its revenues were so high that the owner was able to make large annual donations to hospitals in London.  

Mr. and Mrs. Maduro
Mr. and Mrs. Maduro from Willemstad, Curacao were eager to erect a monument in honor of their only son George, who died from typhus as a prisoner in Dachau in February 1945. For his heroic deeds in the first days of the war he posthumously received the Military Order of William I. Before the war, George J.L. Maduro had been a law student in the city of Leiden. After they met Mrs. Boon-van der Starp, Mr. and Mrs. Maduro decided to donate a sum of money for the construction of a miniature city as a monument in commemoration of their son, instead of erecting a regular monument  

Architect
Architect S.J. Bouma, who in those days managed the Zuiderzee Museum in Enkhuizen, was happy to contribute to building a miniature city. After visiting Beaconsfield, he worked out a plan to reconstruct a Dutch city, as it would have developed in the course of the centuries, on a 1:25 scale. The central theme was: the small city with a smile. Bouma’s plans and drawings were used to approach the managers of a number if major companies for financial support.

Most of them reacted so enthusiastically a petrol station, a nodding donkey pomp, a motorway, a railway and an airport were made. The mayor of The Hague was also willing to contribute to this unique plan and arranged for a piece of land in the ‘Scheveningse Bosjes’ to be handed over on the basis of a long lease. The grounds were cleared by enthusiastic students from the Delft Technical University. The exploitation was carried out by the Society for the Support of the Dutch Student Sanatorium and specialists in many fields.  

The design of Madurodam has not been changed since 1952. In 1996 Madurodam expended. The entrance, consisting of two dykes and a big lighthouse and some new models were made as also two multifunctional conference rooms and a exhibition hall.The biggest building project after the opening is the renewed Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. In 2003 the new airport was opened after a complete renovation. On the platform there is a new induction technique, presented here for the first time. It enables the three-meter long aircraft to taxi along the platform employing a magnetic field, rechargeable batteries and miniature computers.

Further information available on:

• George Maduro