''De Wachter'' (English: ''The Watchman'') is a

smock mill The smock mill is a type of windmill that consists of a sloping, horizontally weatherboarded, thatched, or shingled tower, usually with six or eight sides. It is topped with a roof or cap that rotates to bring the sails into the wind. This t ...

Zuidlaren Zuidlaren ( Noordenvelds: ''Zuudlaoren'') is a village in the province of Drenthe in the Northern Netherlands. Zuidlaren has just over 10,000 inhabitants and is situated on natural heightened land which is called the Hondsrug. The village is part ...

Drenthe Drenthe () is a province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and the German state of Lower Saxony to the east. As of Jan ...

, which has been restored to working order. The mill was built in 1851 and is listed as a

Rijksmonument A (, ) 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 had 61,822 l ...

, number 41064.

History

''De Wachter'' was built in 1851 for the Van Bon family as a corn mill and oil mill. In 1895, the mill was bought by Jan Medendorp, who installed two steam engines as auxiliary power in 1898. The engines were . One steam engine drove an electricity generator while the other was used to power a spice mill. The windmill remaining independent of the auxiliary power. In 1935, the oil mill and spice mill ceased to be used and were dismantled, as were the steam engines. In 1950, Diek Medendorp, the grandson of Jan, decided to close the windmill. Plans were made to preserve the mill, including the restoration of the steam engines. The mill was declared a Rijksmonument by the ''Ministerie van Cultuur, Recreatie en Maatschappelijk Werk''. Between 1968 and 1970 the mill was restored by Diek Medendorp. From 1987, the rest of the mill complex was also restored and in 1989 the mill was transferred into the ownership of the Stichting Koren en Oliemolen De Wachter. The mill complex houses a

baker A baker is a tradesperson who baking, bakes and sometimes Sales, sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient histo ...

y, a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

's workshop, a butcher's shop, a clog maker's workshop, a grocer's shop, a millwright's workshop and a spice mill. Four steam engines are kept in working order. (Click on "Geschiedenis" to view.) There is also a waggon maker's workshop. These are all presented as they would have appeared in 1895.

Description

''De Wachter'' is what the Dutch describe as an "achtkante stellingmolen". It is a three-storey smock mill on a four-storey brick base. The stage is at third-floor level, above ground level. The smock and cap are thatched. The mill is winded by a tailpole and winch. The four common sails have a span of . They have leading edges streamlined on the Fauël system. The sails are carried in a cast-iron ''windshaft'' which was cast by De Muinck Keizer, Martenshoek in 1904. The ''windshaft'' also carries the ''brake wheel'' which has 63 cogs. This drives the ''wallower'' (33 cogs) at the top of the ''upright shaft''. At the bottom of the ''upright shaft'', the ''great spur wheel'', which has 89 cogs, drives the diameter Cullen stones via a ''lantern pinion stone nut'' with 33 staves and the diameter French Burr stones via a ''lantern pinion stone nut'' with 29 staves. (Click on "Technische gegevens" to view.) A pair of edge runner stones are driven via a ''lantern pinion stone nut'' with 29 staves.

Millers

*Van Bon (1851–95) *Jan Medendorp (1895– ) *Medendorp *Diek Medendorp ( -1950) References for above:-

Public access

''De Wachter'' is open to the public on Wednesdays from 13:00 to 16:30 and on Saturdays from 10:00 to 16:30 between May and September.

References

External links

De Wachter website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wachter, Zuidlaren Windmills in Drenthe Smock mills in the Netherlands Windmills completed in 1851 Rijksmonuments in Drenthe Octagonal buildings in the Netherlands 1851 establishments in the Netherlands De Wachter, Zuidlaren 19th-century architecture in the Netherlands