Slochteren () is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

and former municipality with a population of 15,546 in the province of

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

in the northeast of the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. On 1 January 2018, Slochteren merged with Hoogezand-Sappemeer and Menterwolde, forming the municipality Midden-Groningen. The former municipality can be characterized as a chain of small villages dividing a mostly agricultural landscape. Having an agricultural background for at least a thousand years, the community houses for the most part commuters to nearby towns like

Hoogezand Hoogezand () is a town in the municipality of Midden-Groningen, in the province of Groningen in northeast Netherlands. History The name refers to a higher sanded ''(Hooge Sandt)'' place in the peatlands cut through when the Winschoterdiep Cha ...

and

Delfzijl Delfzijl (; ) is a city and former municipality (which now belongs to the municipality of Eemsdelta) with a population of 25,651 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Delfzijl was a sluice between the Delf and the Em ...

. The

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...

Fraeylemaborg (a small 'castle', the oldest parts of which are dated in the Middle Ages) is located in Slochteren.

Geography

The population centres in the former municipality are: * Denemarken * Froombosch * Harkstede * Hellum * Kolham * Lageland * Luddeweer * Overschild * Schaaphok * Scharmer * Schildwolde * Siddeburen * Slochteren * Steendam * Tjuchem * Woudbloem Gem-Slochteren-OpenTopo

''Topographic map of the municipality of Slochteren, June 2015''

Natural gas field

Slochteren is in the center of the

giant In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: ''wiktionary:gigas, gigas'', cognate wiktionary:giga-, giga-) are beings of humanoid appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''gia ...

Groningen gas field, discovered in 1959, ensuring the position of the Netherlands as a major energy exporting country. The estimated gas reserves in 2009 were .NAM/Shell gas/oil website
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Gallery

File:Protestantske tsjerke, Slochteren.jpg, Protestant Church File:SlochterenRM.jpg, Former courthouse of Slochteren File:SlochterenGemeentehuis.jpg, Town hall File:Old postoffice Slochteren.JPG, Former post office

References

External links

* Midden-Groningen Natural gas industry in the Netherlands Former municipalities of Groningen (province) Populated places in Groningen (province) Municipalities of the Netherlands disestablished in 2018 {{gasfield-stub