Editing Essen, Belgium (section)

=== Post-war history ===
In 1959, a new customs office rose on Nieuwstraat, the very site where the O.-L.-V. Geboortekerk (Church of the Nativity) once stood before its destruction in World War II. Essen claimed the title of second-busiest road office on the Belgian-Dutch border, right behind [[Wuustwezel]], until it shuttered on 1 January 1993.

Since 1976, Essen has maintained civic ties with Essen in [[Oldenburg (city)|Oldenburg, German]]y.

The landscape of local governance saw a shake-up in 1977. Municipal borders and territories were rationalized, culminating in the formation of Essen-Hoek. Although Hoek had been around for centuries, it was fragmented into Kalmthoutsehoek and Essen-Hoek (also known as Moerkant). Given that the parish of Hoek had already existed for 150 years, this administrative unification served more as a formality than a revolution.