"Huis de Beuk," as the building is affectionately known, bears the echoes of its first residents, the Beuken family. From 1848 onward, this family watched over the vast fields and lush forests, generation after generation.
In 1848, the forester's house was built of marlstone by order of the Martens family, who lived in Leuven (B) and owned the forested area. At the foot of hill the Riesenberg, which rises proudly like a silent sentinel, lay a well. This was dug in 1847 by Andreas Beuken, the founder of the house. The water they brought up seemed to carry the soul of the mountain itself.
In 1870 ownership changed; the building came into the hands of the Maastricht Schreinemacher family. But the Beukens, inextricably linked to this place, continued to live there for quit some time.
When the last residents, moved elsewhere in 1955 the soul of the house seemed to retreat.
In 1959, the building found a new destination in the hands of Staatsbosbeheer, a Dutch government organization for forestry and the management of nature reserves. They used the house for a while as a place of rest for their staff.
A new concrete well with a filter was constructed in 1961, but the house's glory slowly faded.
The '70s brought decline. The walls crumbled, nature began to reclaim its rightful place, and by the '80s the fate of House de Beuk seemed sealed: demolition.
But like any good story, there was an unexpected twist. In 1989 the house was saved from oblivion.
'Grueles', the Local History Foundation and members of the Savelsbos Wildlife Management Unit joined forces and gave the building its soul back through restoration and care.
Hous de Beuk was resurrected, not only as a building, but as a symbol of perseverance, history and the deep roots that connect people and place.
The barn owl has been nesting in the attic of the house for years (the male usually also roosts in the marl pit).
Next to the house stands a large black walnut tree (Juglans Nigra). The edible nuts resemble those of the common walnut (Juglans Regia) but are harder to crack. The tree is native to eastern North America, Texas, and southeastern Canada.
Grueles has already planted a young specimen as a future replacement.
