The port of Amsterdam for a long period of time, suffered the problem that the sea was only accessible via the Zuiderzee, now called The IJsselmeer. A decision was made to develop the Noordhollands Canal. This canal connects Den Helder with Amsterdam and seemed to be the solution to the problem. The size of ships increased more then foreseen and the Noordhollands Canal soon appeared to be too narrow. The idea to dig a canal right through the dunes to make a short connection to the sea, showed to be the best solution for the long term. Diggers started their work in 1865. At November  1^st 1886 the North See Canal was opened.
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