Oud Bergveen’s garden is inhabited by squirrels and a wide variety of birds. Deer and cows coexist peacefully in the meadows. The interesting Prison Museum (Gevangenismuseum) in Veenhuizen is certainly worth a visit, and there are countless options for enjoyable cycling and walking tours in the magnificent Drenthe landscape. Nature reserve ‘Fochtelöerveen’, a unique moorland region, is also nearby. As are the Drents-Friese Wold, a national park consisting of forest, heathland and peat bogs, as well as Norg and Langelo, two characteristic ‘esdorpen’ (villages with farms centred around a square/church, surrounded by fields and heathland). Guests have a choice of various good restaurants in the vicinity. History In 1822, the ‘Maatschappij van Weldadigheid’, a Dutch welfare society, purchased an unbroken area of wasteland near and around Veenhuizen. The aim was to establish a colony there that would be obliged to take in vagrants, beggars, orphans and abandoned children from large cities. To enable the society to provide shelter to everyone, three square barracks were built which became known as the three institutions. The people living in the institutions were initially set to work cultivating the wasteland, and later in factories and on farms. The former Oud Bergveen complex was built in 1839 to serve as a weaving and cotton mill. The 'inmates' who were too weak to do heavy farm labour ended up working in the mills. In 2002, the complex was sold to a private owner who required four long years to restore the historic premises to their old glory and give them a new purpose.