Sint Martinus ( en, Saint Martin) is a

tower mill A tower mill is a type of vertical windmill consisting of a brick or stone tower, on which sits a wooden 'cap' or roof, which can rotate to bring the sails into the wind.Medieval science, technology, and medicine: an encyclopedia (2005), 520 Thi ...

Didam Didam (locally, Diem) is a town in the Netherlands in the eastern part of Netherlands in the region of "De Achterhoek", province of Gelderland. It is located in the municipality of Montferland about 18 km east of Arnhem, which is the capital ...

Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...

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 was built in 1855 and has been restored to working order. 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 ...

History

In 1854, Theodorus Kempers was given permission to build a

corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...

and

pearl barley Pearl barley, or pearled barley, is barley that has been processed to remove its fibrous outer hull and polished to remove some or all of the bran layer. It is the most common form of barley for human consumption because it cooks faster and i ...

mill at

. The mill was completed in 1855. In 1942, the sails were fitted with streamlined leading edges on the Van Bussel system. Later, two Ten Have sails were fitted. On 12 November 1964, the mill caught fire. It was subsequently restored. In 1973, the mill stopped working because a pair of sails were loose in the canister of the windshaft. The mill was returned to working order in 1977. The work was carried out by

millwright A millwright is a craftsperson or skilled tradesperson who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites. The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mecha ...

Groot Wesseldijk of Laren,

North Holland North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland, ) is a province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In November 2019, it had a ...

. By 1997, the mill was again in need of restoration, and a planning application was made for the replacement of the sails. It was not until 2007 that the mill was restored to working order. The mill being sold in that year to the Stichting St. Martinusmolen. ''Sint Martinusmolen'' is listed as a

, № 12869.

Description

''Sint Martinusmolen'' is what the Dutch call a "Beltmolen". It is a three storey tower mill built into a mound which is high. There is no stage, the sails reaching almost down to ground level. The cap is covered in

dakleer Bituminous waterproofing systems are designed to protect residential and commercial buildings. Bitumen (asphalt or coal-tar pitch) is a mixed substance made up of organic liquids that are highly sticky, viscous, and waterproof. These systems are ...

. Winding is by tailpole and winch. The sails are a pair of

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 ...

, fitted with the Fauël system on their leading edges; and a pair of Ten Have sails, fitted with the Van Bussel system on their leading edges. They have a span of . They are carried on a

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

''windshaft''. The windshaft also carries the ''brake wheel'', which has 59 cogs. This drives a ''wallower'' with 32 cogs, which is situated at the top of the ''upright shaft''. At the bottom of the ''upright shaft'' is the ''great spur wheel'', which has 95 cogs. This drives a pair of diameter French Burr

millstone Millstones or mill stones are stones used in gristmills, for grinding wheat or other grains. They are sometimes referred to as grindstones or grinding stones. Millstones come in pairs: a convex stationary base known as the ''bedstone'' and ...

s via a ''lantern pinion stone nut'' with 27 staves.

Public access

''Sint Martinus'' is open on Saturday from 10:00 to 16:00, or by appointment.

References

External links

Mill website
{{Dutch Windmills Windmills in Gelderland Windmills completed in 1855 Tower mills in the Netherlands Grinding mills in the Netherlands Agricultural buildings in the Netherlands Rijksmonuments in Gelderland Montferland