Lovely Leenderstrijp - Visit Heeze-Leende

Leenderstrijp

Far away from the hustle and bustle and yet central is Leenderstrijp. This historic hamlet exudes atmosphere and geniality.

On the elongated Strijperstraat are many old long-fronted farmhouses. Coming from Leende the road leads you into the Leenderbos. But before you get there, there is every reason to stop.

At the heart of the hamlet stands a grocery store that is over a hundred years old. Once founded by locals to pay for their own elementary school. Today it is a supermarket, meeting place and tourist attraction all in one. But Leenderstrijp also has a bicycle café, several vacation homes and a variety of camping options.

The old hamlet has many places that capture the imagination. The small St. John's Chapel on a hill just outside the village. The characteristic little triangular squares, bordered by old farms. The narrow streets. The annual fair and open-air mass. The colorful local marksmen's guild successfully keeps age-old traditions alive.

To live in Leenderstrijp is to know, greet and meet each other. For passers-by and recreationists, the hamlet is an oasis of tranquility in the midst of beautiful green nature.

Visit Leenderstrijp by bike, on foot or on horseback. Come along and taste the real Brabant hospitality.

Nostalgic grocery store

Buying groceries on the cheap. This is not just something of the last century, because it can still be done at Coop Sint Jan. This is the oldest remaining independent grocery store in the Netherlands.

The store was founded in 1916 by the inhabitants of Leenderstrijp. The goal was to use the store to pay for their own elementary school.

Strijpen residents were members of the store association and still are. They would like to preserve the store and the rich history associated with it. The atmosphere is still old-fashioned, but the offer meets all the needs of the present time.

More about Coop Sint Jan

Art under the highway

How do you turn a simple tunnel into a true Masterpiece? You can see it in the Strijpertunneltje. This tunnel forms a connection between the centers of Leende and Leenderstrijp. A mural tells the story of Leende. The fresco was designed by Beeldentemmers and was realized with local residents. So don't drive too fast!

Special farmhouses

Leenderstrijp is a small village with great attractions. Especially the beautiful long-gabled farmhouses are more than worth seeing. A long-gabled farmhouse is a rectangular farm type in which the front house, stable and barn are built together and all doors are placed in the long gables. The various farmhouses, distributed throughout the village, combine to form a unique picture that often amazes visitors.

Below is a list of the most remarkable farmhouses:

Strijperstraat 24a/26. Long-gabled farmhouse from 1735 or 1738.
Strijperstraat 25. Long gable farm from 1820.
Strijperstraat 36. Long gable farmhouse from 1856.
Strijperstraat 38. Long-gabled farmhouse from the end of the 18th century. A beam contains the date 1610. In front of the farm are century-old linden trees.
Strijperstraat 42. Long-gabled farmhouse from the beginning of the 18th century, partly still in old stone.
Strijperstraat 44. Long-gabled farmhouse from the beginning of the 18th century. It contains an inner door with date 1730.
Riesten 2. Long gable farmhouse from 1818 and national monument.
Strijperstraat 50. Long gable farm from 1900.
Strijperstraat 59. Long gable farm from the second half of the 18th century.
Zaalstraat 1. Long gabled farmhouse from the beginning of the 18th century.
Cloister 1. Farmhouse dating from 1857.
Monastery 16. Long gable farmhouse from the 19th century. It is claimed that stones from the old St. John's Chapel emerged here when the cellar was dug.
Heerstraat 2. Long-gabled farmhouse from the 19th century.

St. John's Chapel in Leenderstrijp

St. John's Chapel, majestically situated on a hill in Leenderstrijp, is more than just a chapel - it is a monument steeped in history.

Originally built in the 15th century as an impressive chapel dedicated to St. John the Baptist, the chapel underwent a period of decline after 1648 due to the prohibition of the Catholic faith. The faithful were forced to church in shelter churches, and the chapels were closed.

In 1843, St. John's Chapel rose again from the ruins, following the restoration of religious freedom around 1840. The hill on which the chapel stands houses not only the new structure, but also the remains of the original chapel, giving the site a historical layering.

The architecture of the brick chapel is simple but enchanting, crowned with a gabled roof and featuring two gables. A rectangular apse adorns the rear. Inside, a ceramic replica of a stolen 16th-century wooden dish with the image of St. John awaits.

Restorations in 1973 and 1999 restored the chapel to its former glory, making it a recognized national monument.

The enigmatic bells of Leenderstrijp

Discover the enchanting history of the bells from the former chapel of Leenderstrijp. Dating back to 1440, these bells hung in the chapel's belfry until it fell into disrepair after the banning of the Roman Catholic faith in 1648.

The story takes an interesting turn in 1815, when mayor J.B. Clephas tried to seize the bells. This led to a remarkable legal joust between Clephas and Frans van Dijk, the occupant of the farm where the bells were stored. In the end, the governor decided that the municipality should keep the bells, but care was lacking and in 1829 they were even sold for scrap metal to the municipality of Reppel (Belgium).

Lore adds a touch of mystery to the story, with tales of the bells being hidden from the French during the French Period. Could the Klokkeven, where the bells were popularly said to have been thrown, be the key to the mystery?

In 2004, a search began for the bells in the farmhouse on the Kaatsveld. Armed with shovel, auger and metal detector, floors and stables were examined, but the mystery remains unsolved. Not a single bell was found under the floor.

More about this myth

The auxiliary school in Leenderstrijp

In the year 1867, the Leende town council decided to expand education in Leenderstrijp. An auxiliary school was chosen, and the old falconer's house of Hermanus van Dijk was bought for this purpose, albeit after some negotiations about the price. This expansion was partly made possible by subsidies from both the state and the province, with local influences, such as Johannes Franciscus Pompen, playing a role.

Contractor Lucas van Gaal from Geldrop was commissioned to build the school, supported by carpenter Jan van Kuijk and cooper Laurens Vroomans from Leende.

The building project included various works, such as furnishing a schoolroom, building a privy and replacing the ceiling. Finally, Petrus Beijers was appointed as Leenderstrijp's first assistant teacher on 15 February 1869. Beijers, born in Lierop, already had experience as acting schoolmaster in Vlierden.

After two years at Leenderstrijp, Beijers returned to his hometown, where he later became headmaster and made notable contributions to education. Thus, the beginning of the auxiliary school at Leenderstrijp had its early years with Petrus Beijers as the pioneering assistant teacher.

In 1898, in the building of the auxiliary school, dairy factory De Eensgezindheid was established. Leenderstrijp had to wait until 1916 for another school of its own.