De Eenhoorn (; en, italic=yes, The Unicorn) is a

paltrok mill The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. Its defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. All p ...

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

which has been restored to working order. As all Dutch ''paltrok mills'' it is a windpowered

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

. The mill is listed as a

Rijksmonument A rijksmonument (, ) is a national heritage site of the Netherlands, listed by the agency Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed (RCE) acting for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. At the end of February 2015, the Netherlands ...

, number 19872.

History

The first mentions of a sawmill on this location date from the 17th century. A date, 23-8-1776, found inscribed in the mill, suggests the current paltrok mill was built to replace an older mill at that date. Ownership of the mill regularly changed over the years. The end of its working years came when an electric-powered sawmill was built in 1924, making the old windmill superfluous. De Hollandsche Molen then acquired the mill to save it from demolition. The mill was restored and for a few years rented back to millers, though these mostly used the electric sawmill. Around 1931 was the last time the windmill was used commercially. The mill was repaired again in 1936 but it was worked very little. In 1949 foundation ''Nehim-Molen "De Eenhoorn"'' was set up by one of the directors of wood trading company ''N.V. Nederlandse Houtimport Maatschappij "Nehim"'' with the goal to restore and operate ''De Eenhoorn''. The foundation restored and owned the windmill until its dissolution in 1957 and the mill returned to ''De Hollandse Molen'' who in turn sold it to municipally Haarlem in 1963. ''De Eenhoorn'' is operated by Stichting Molens Zuid-Kennemerland since 1984. The sawing mechanisms were restored so the mill was fully functional again by 1990. Repairs to the frame of the mill were carried out from 1992 to 1993.

Description

''De Eenhoorn'' is a Dutch ''paltrok mill'' - a wooden mill supported on a short central post and a ring of wooden rollers on a low brick base and designed specifically for sawing wood. The mill body is boarded, however the sawing floor is open on three sides with only the windward facing side and the side roofs giving protection against the weather. The entire mill is winded by a tailpole and winch. On the front is a stage, above ground for setting the sails. The sails are

common sails Common may refer to: Places * Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland * Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts * Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts * Clapham Common, originally com ...

with a span of . They are carried on a cast-iron ''windshaft'' of unknown manufacturer. The ''brake wheel'' with 75 cogs drives the crank wheel with 33 radial cogs on the horizontal

crank shaft A crankshaft is a mechanical component used in a piston engine to convert the reciprocating motion into rotational motion. The crankshaft is a rotating shaft containing one or more crankpins, that are driven by the pistons via the connecting rod ...

. There is no upright shaft. The ''crank shaft'' has four

crank pin A crankpin or crank pin, also known as a rod bearing journal, is a mechanical device in an engine which connects the crankshaft to the connecting rod for each cylinder. It has a cylindrical surface, to allow the crankpin to rotate relative to t ...

s to drive four sawing frames, one more than common in Dutch wind-sawmills. The mill is also a bit wider than common to accommodate the extra sawing frame. The rearmost sawing frame was later removed and replaced by a reciprocating weight to keep the mechanism balanced. Connecting rods from the crank pins drive the frame saws. Reciprocating lever bars also drive the pawl and ratchet mechanisms which in turn drive the winches and the feeding mechanism of the log carriages through

rack and pinion A rack and pinion is a type of linear actuator that comprises a circular gear (the '' pinion'') engaging a linear gear (the ''rack''). Together, they convert rotational motion into linear motion. Rotating the pinion causes the rack to be driven ...

mechanisms. The winches can be used with the log hoist to lift logs from the water onto the sawing platform and to pull the log carriages back to their starting position.

Public access

The mill is open to visitors on Saturdays and on appointment.

References

External links

''De Eenhoorn'' on the website of ''Stichting Molens Zuid-Kennemerland''
(Dutch) {{Dutch Windmills Windmills in North Holland Rijksmonuments in North Holland Windmills completed in 1776 Buildings and structures in Haarlem