User:Peekarica/Lange Jan Lange Lies

In the history of the Dutch city Heerlen, the city had two huge smoke stacks. They were an part of the Oranje-Nassau mine 1, and used for the mine.

Lange Jan
Lange Jan was built in March 1936, and completed in August 1938. From hes time, he was the tallest smoke stack in Europe. During hes important service in World War II he earned the nickname "The old Reliable". After the World War II, Wiel Knipa sort of King of Pop made an music track about the smoke stack. After the years of hard working, the smoke stack had to believe he would end in the afternoon of August 21, 1976.

Lange Lies
Lange Lies was built in 1950, and completed in mid 1953. At her time she was called "Jacob from Heerlen", this nickname had pushed hes old brother Lange Jan a whole bit in the shadow. Some months later she was renamed to Lange Lies, she became the tallest smoke stack ever built in Europe, after hes brother Lange Jan. During her service years she saw with her old brother famous people, and the Dutch Queen entering the Oranje Nassau mine 1.

Demise
On December 31, 1974. The last coal mine of the Dutch country closed her doors. During the upcoming two years people protested to kept the towers as a part of the symbol from Heerlen. The mayor of Heerlen spread the news that the towers weren't usable anymore and were useless to keep them. On the early hot morning of August 15, 1976 thousands of people saw the first smoke stack coming down, the news was on television in nearly every country near the Netherlands.

When the last judgement day came for Lange Jan on August 21, 1976 an builder of the smoke stack said on the news that the smoke stack wont give up so quick as possible. Some minutes before the detonation of the smoke stack Lange Jan, two planes flied over the city with a long ribbon "We will miss you Lange Jan, Lange Lies". When the bombs exploded in Lange Jan, the Lange Jan fell a little to the good side, but suddenly he had chance to fell to the wrong side. Around 17:25 hours he fell on the wrong side, over the roads, on the trees and making many houses unlivable and taking the power lines down in the entire city. Later in the night of that day, people organised an memorial party to remember the towers.

Rebuilding
On December 17, 2010 the smoke-stacks will come back as light in Heerlen. It will be visible for some months, then the Dutch Mine museum will look if it is possible to rebuild the smoke stacks as observation deck towers. Many favor rebuilding of the once famous towers, which dominated Heerlen skyline for years.