Commemorative tile panel showing the pumping station and the 1947 decision to name the station after engineer D.F. Wouda.
On the edge of Lemmer, where land and water continually battle for space, the Ir. D.F. Woudagemaal stands as a monument to Dutch engineering — and a machine still in active service.
Built in 1918, this steam-powered pumping station is the largest of its kind in the world still operating. When Friesland faces high water, the boilers are fired up, the pistons start pounding, and the Woudagemaal begins to pump millions of liters toward the IJsselmeer. It’s not just historic — it’s essential.
Inside, you walk through vast brick halls where cast-iron engines, red valves, and gleaming pressure gauges create the feeling of a mechanical cathedral. The technology is a century old, but when it comes to keeping the province dry, the Woudagemaal still delivers.
Named after engineer Dirk Frederik Wouda, the pumping station became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. Today, it’s open to visitors, who can explore the machinery, visit the interactive visitor center, and — if the water rises — witness the living power of steam.
The boiler hall, where huge vessels heat water to generate steam.
The steam engines with the great flywheels that drive the pumps.
