Joure originated partly on top of a
gaast (sand ridge) and a
late Medieval dike that ran from the local
toll house to
Haskerhorne; the later
Midstraat was built on the crown of this embankment. In addition to this, Joure also lay on a crossing of waterways next to the former village of Westermeer. In the early fifteenth century, many canals were dug by traders of the
Hanseatic League. They were looking for a remote place that could only be reached through canals and by
trekschuit, because these places were relatively safe from the feared
Northerners. Then the
Kolk was also dug, from where a
De Overspitting waterway to
Heerenveen was dug. During the
Great Depression of the twentieth century there was a lot of activity in Joure. The
peat that came from the present day lake of
Nannewiid, south of
Oudehaske, was transported on
prams in Joure and was transferred to
skûtsjes. This transfer took place at the place where the
Oerdracht church now stands. Some street names, such as
Eeltsjebaes,
Aukebaes and
Hettebaes, still recall the
shipyards, where new
skûtsjes and prams were made, but many repairs were also made. Before
World War II, Joure was part of an extensive
horse-drawn tram network. Joure was connected with
Sneek,
Lemmer and Heerenveen. The
Stationsstraat is a street name from that era. Before the construction of these rails, roads had to be built of which the
Tramwei street is a reminder. Before then, people were used to doing all transport by boat. Joure is traditionally not a
city, but also too big to be called a
village. According to Old Frisian tradition, such a place is called a
vlecke. There are different theories about the origin of the name Joure or
De Jouwer. It is often thought that it comes from the
Frisian word
Hjouwer, which refers to
oats. Joure is also inextricably linked to that of
Douwe Egberts (DE). In 1753, Douwe Egberts' father,
Egbert Douwes, started a
colonial merchandise business on the
Midstraat in Joure, which has become the well-known
coffee roaster. For years, there was another DE store on the
Midstraat. It was closed on 24 October 2014. Until the municipal reorganization of 1984, Joure was the administrative center of the former municipality of
Haskerland and then until 2014 of the former municipality of
Skarsterlân. Joure then became part of the municipality of
De Fryske Marren. The
Haulster forests lie east of Joure.
De Haskerveenpolder is located north of Joure. The
Langweerderwielen is a lake located west of Joure. Joure has a public subtropical
swimming pool,
marina, a historic town center, and water-rich residential areas. File:Joure. Kerktoren van Westermeer. Geert Knolweg 4 (Rijksmonument) 01.jpg|Tower of the former Westermeer church File:Joure, de toren van de Hobbe van Baerdt Tsjerke Hervormde kerk in straatzicht RM20833 IMG 2161 2018-04-17 11.48.jpg|Hobbe van Baerdt church, or
Jouster Tour File:Mattheuskerk Joure.jpg|
Saint Matthew church File:Watertoren Joure uo.JPG|Water tower of Joure File:Joure De Witte Os.jpg|Former store of Egbert Douwes, now part of
Museum Joure File:Joure-plaats-OpenTopo.jpg|Topographic map of Joure, June 2014 ==Economy==