Voormalig Rijks-HBS Sappemeer
The schoolgebouw of the Rijks Hogere Burgerschool was built in 1868. The style is eclectic with a classicist front.
Take a closer look
There is also a wooden bell tower on the roof. The stately front door was used only after graduation ceremonies. The actual entrance was found in the western side wall. The building is impressive, but its history even more so. For this was the school where Aletta Jacobs (1854 - 1929) took her first steps on the path of study. In 1870, she was admitted as a 'hearer'. This made her the first woman in the Netherlands to attend a HBS. The following year, she was admitted to Groningen University, where she was again the first woman. She would eventually become the first female doctor in the Netherlands. In 1951, the school's name was changed. Henceforth, it was the Aletta Jacobs school. Today, the building is no longer used as a school, but as office space.