page_title: Gooi
section_title: Modern era
hierarchical_section_title: Gooi / History / Modern era
caption_attribution_description: City hall This is an image of rijksmonument number 46773
context_page_description: The Gooi is an area around Hilversum, in the centre of the Netherlands. It is a slightly hilly area characterised by its green landscape, its historical charm, the wealth of its inhabitants, and its villas. Het Gooi is known in the Netherlands as the home of the rich and famous.
context_section_description: Starting around 1500, and reaching a peak in the 17th century, sand was quarried in the area for the expansion of Amsterdam. As a result a number of waterways were dug in 's-Graveland, Naarden and Bussum. The canal system and the arrival of a canal boat system connecting the area to Amsterdam helped the area to grow further economically. Hilversum developed into a centre for the production of wool and textiles.
  With the laying of canals, and later the railways, wealthy people from Amsterdam and Utrecht began to build grand country homes in the area. Affluent neighbourhoods (e.g. the Bussum neighbourhood of 't Spiegel) developed. As a result of the railway between Amsterdam and Amersfoort in 1874, Hilversum and Bussum were the first to grow. In 1892, after the tram line connecting Laren, Blaricum and Huizen was laid, these towns also developed. In the 1950s the construction of motorways (the A1 and the A27) continued this process.
  The broadcast industry in Het Gooi developed after the NSF factory (Nederlandse Seintoestellen Fabriek, Dutch Broadcasting-equipment Factory) was built in Hilversum in 1918. It expanded from Hilversum to the other towns nearby. The first television broadcast in the Netherlands was from Bussum. Today the Netherlands Public Broadcasting has offices and studios all over the area.
  Het Gooi has become heavily populated. Because of the nature in the area and its historic charm, the villages have become attractive to the affluent, including retirees. The population is relatively older and there are many old-age homes. The original inhabitants of the area have been submerged by the flood of newcomers. The local dialect that used to be spoken here has virtually disappeared.
caption: Hilversum town hall, designed by Willem Marinus Dudok in 1924
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