The river Schie was dammed by the Lord of Wassenaer and the Amtlord Dirk Bokel of the Amt Mathenesse, this to protect the existing polderland against the seawater from the North Sea.

In the year 1275 Schiedam received town privileges from Lady Adelaide, this in her capacity as sister of William II, the reigning Count of Holland and King of the Romans.

[citation needed] As a young settlement Schiedam soon got competition from surrounding towns and cities: in 1340, Rotterdam and Delft also were allowed to establish a connection between the Schie and the Meuse.

[citation needed] On 10 August 1856, the first major train accident in the Netherlands happened near Schiedam Centrum railway station, causing 3 deaths.

In 1941, the ancient municipalities Kethel en Spaland were merged with Schiedam, which made large expansions of the town possible with residential areas in the north.

[citation needed] At the end of the 20th century, the shipbuilding industry largely disappeared and today, Schiedam is mainly a commuter-area in the Rotterdam metropolitan area.

It is enclosed between Rotterdam (east), Midden-Delfland (north), Vlaardingen (west) and the river Nieuwe Maas (south).

Schiedam exists of nine districts: Centrum ('Center'), Oost ('East'), Gorzen ('South'), West ('West'), Nieuwland, Groenoord, Kethel, Woudhoek and Spaland/Sveaparken.

Two of its prominent soccer clubs, SVV (Schiedamse voetbal vereniging) and Hermes, were formerly part of the Netherlands' professional football league before being relegated due to financial difficulties.