Due to lots of soil extraction, there was a large deep lake named the
Zuidplas ("South puddle") until the 19th century. This area was viewed as a very worthy land for agriculture. In 1816, King
William I decided to drain the lake. During the following years, a plan for the development of the area was developed which was supposed to be deployed between the church towers of Moorkapelle and Moordrecht. In 1825, reclamation of the area finally started. With the help of 30
windmills, the water was drained into a ring-shaped canal, and the action was finished in 1840. Forty years later, steam pumphouses took over the area and started to regulate the water level. Currently, electrical pumphouses have mostly replaced the previous buildings, except in a few places. ==Vijfde Dorp==