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Elsloo (The Netherlands)

Ooststellingwerf municipality, Fryslân province

by Jarig Bakker, 31 Aug 2003

Elsloo village

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Elsloo village

Elsloo is a village in the municipality of Ooststellingwerf, Fryslân province - not to be confused with the former municipality of Elsloo, now in Stein municipality, Limburg province.
Elsoo is on the Fryslân - Drenthe border in a woody environment, with c. 600 inhabitants. The idea for a village flag was necessitated by the 1977 contest between villages of the municipality, where all villages proudly carried flags - but Elsloo not :-( The flag which was made was used, it was said, for one day only. The society for village-interests "Plaatselijk Belang" amply discussed the flag. A flag-design-competition was organized, deadline 1 Mar 1978. Then "Plaatselijk Belang" discussed the designs together with some Ooststellingwerver VIPs. The winning design was by Hendrik Betten - it was accepted only after some odds and ends had been improved. The villagers were asked whether they wanted to use the flag, and the Dokkumer Vlaggencentrale got the order of 50 Elslooer flags.
Source: "De Nieuwe Ooststellingwerver" (local ad-paper), 8 Mar 1979, quoted in VN.
Comments by Mr. Bultsma: The Ooststellingwervers may be prominent, but they are not prominent in designing flags...
Description: the flag consists of green and white stripes with a vertical yellow stripe towards the hoist charged with a red-brown
"elsetakkien" - alderbranch.
Source: Vexilla Nostra nr. 104/105, 1979, article by P. Bultsma.
<the description is incomplete, I don't know whether the letters ELSLOO have in reality been put on the flag>
Jarig Bakker, 31 Aug 2003

From Vexilla Nostra, VI, 1971:
The Dutch Mailservice (PTT) has the habit of regularly confusing Elsloo (Limburg) with Elsloo (Fryslân). The villagers of Elsloo (Fryslân) became annoyed with that - whereupon the members of the Vesuviusclub departed on 28 Dec 1970 for Limburg, and stole the Elsloo municipal CoA. On 4 Jan 1971 the club returned to Limburg to justify their evil deed. However they were overwhelmed by a grandiose unexpected welcome by Mayor and Aldermen, local press and inhabitants of the Limburgian village. After long tenacious negociations Elsloo (Limburg) offered its CoA as a gift to Elsloo (Fryslân), under the condition that Elsloo (Limburg) would receive the "Vesuvius"-flag (red with a black bull, the "village-arms). Furthermore a bottle of Frisian Berenburger was exchanged for a bottle of Limburgian Els.
After that an unofficial party was organized, and the pubs were not allowed to close for 24 hours. Which was a ruse de guerre: for when the Elsloo (Fryslân) villagers departed they missed the Municipal flag of Ooststellingwerf (which they had taken along to underline their protest) - for a moment unobserverved. Here ends this story, but the Frisian Elsloo-ers will attend the carnaval in Elsloo (Limburg).
Quoted from the Leeuwarder Courant, 4 Jan 1971
<The Vesuviusclub is is named after the Vesuvius firecrackers, used to celebrate "Âld en Nij" on New Years eve.>
Jarig Bakker, 3 Sep 2003