Waregem

Waregem is a municipality and city in the Belgian province of West Flanders, set in the valley of the river Lys between Kortrijk and Ghent. It belongs to the administrative district of Kortrijk and comprises the towns of Beveren, Desselgem, Sint-Eloois-Vijve and Waregem proper. People lived along the Lys well before Roman times, and Gallo-Roman coins and artifacts show extensive activity in the first centuries of the common era. In the 10th century most of its territory was granted to the St Peter Abbey in Ghent, and by the end of the 18th century the town counted some 4,500 inhabitants. A flax industry drove the local economy until well into the 20th century, and Waregem received its official city title on 1 January 2000. It is known for the Waregem Koerse horse races at the local hippodrome, dating from 1847, and for the Flanders Field American Cemetery and Memorial, the only American First World War cemetery in Belgium.