When the Westerhaven was still a port, Jacob Praamstra from Marum was a skipper in Groningen. When he entered the Westerhaven via the Hoendiep, he moored in front of the famous Hein Smit café at Steenhouwerskade 11, corner of Sluisstraat. There the skipper knocked back his drink.
The oldest mention of this café dates from 1882. In that year the liquor law came into effect and a license was granted to Jacob Stienstra, who was a tapper and liquor store in the taproom and shop of this building. The café changed owners regularly. In 1901, the café was taken over by Hein Smit, who ran it until 1937. In 1960, Geert Kuiper became the last owner. He called it café d’Olle Wester.
The history of the café came to an end in 1972. The building was demolished as part of the remediation of the neighborhood south of Steenhouwerskade. The Westerhaven has already been filled in and used as a parking lot. There will then no longer be any question of the numerous small ships operated by barge skippers. Road traffic had displaced shipping traffic.
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