Jaap van 't Veen's photos with the keyword: Wassermühle

The Watermolen Hackfort (Hackfort Watermill) is located on the estate Hackfort , close to the castle of the same name. The undershot watermill was first mentioned in the year 1442, while the current square stone building was built around 1700. The mill is equipped with a water wheel with blades and is powered by water from the Hackfortse Beek. The water wheel drives millstones to grind grain. The water mill also supplies electricity to the electricity network. In 1952 the mill was shut down due to the poor condition of the wheel and building. At that time the stream also contained too little water to power the mill. In 1981, the estate (with castle and mill) came into the hands of the Natuurmonumenten (a Dutch society for preservation of nature monuments) and was refurbished. After the water board had ensured that sufficient water flowed through the Hackfortse Beek, a new water wheel was installed in 1998. Since that moment the mill has been in use. Volunteer millers are sawing wood and grinding grain for cattle feed on hydropower. On Saturdays and on special occasions the mill is open to visitors.

The oldest written mention of the Oostendorper watermolen (Oostendorp watermill) - a corn and oil mill on the Buurserbeek - is found in a deed from 1487. The mill was then located about 1 km downstream. In 1547-1548, the double mill was rebuilt at its current location. It also received its current name then, which comes from Johan ten Oostendorp who was the miller in 1547. During the Eighty Years' War (1566 - 1648), the water mill was destroyed. In 1633, Willem Ripperda tot Weldam received permission to build the Oostendorper mill on the current site. Two years later, the mills were back in operation. During the next two centuries, they passed from one owner to another several times, by inheritance or by sale. In 1946, a flood of water washed away the oil mill; it had been rebuilt four years later. In the late 1980s, the Oostendorper watermolen was thoroughly restored and made millable again. Volunteer millers regularly grind grain and crush oil. The municipality of Haaksbergen owns the mill. It is the oldest double water mill in the Netherlands.

The Molen van Otten (Mill of Otten) is located on a branch of the river Geul in the village of Wijlre. It is one of the few water mills in the Netherlands with a double water wheel. The history of the mill dates back to 1275, when it was built as a banmolen (mill soke) of the heerlijkheid (a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas in the Dutch-speaking Low Countries before 1800) Wijlre. The first written mention, however, is from a clergy in the year 1420. A bill for the restoration of the mill by the then Lord of Wijlre, “Gerard Scheiffart van Merode”, indicates the year 1485. Traditionally this watermill was a flour and oil mill. The current mill building and the accompanying house date from 1776, as the wall anchors indicate. In that year, the existing buildings were completely rebuilt and a farm and a brewery were added. At that time, the owners of the complex were the Lords of Wijlre. They leased the house with mill, farm and brewery. When the Ancien Regime was abolished at the end of the 18th century, Kasteel Wijlre , the mill, the farm and the brewery came into the hands of “Guillaume Eugene de Massen”. In 1871, the brewery was sold separately to the brewer “Frederik Edmond Brand”; this was the beginning of Brand's brewery, which grew into one of the best-known breweries in Limburg. In the thirties of the 20th century the miller’s house was badly damaged by extremely high water of the river Geul. The mill fell into disrepair and restoration started after the mill was bought by the Otten family. Since then the mill has been called Molen van Otten . Since 1981 the mill is also used for small scale electricity production. Nowadays some holiday apartments have been created in the buildings. The Molen van Otten is a National Heritage Site.

The Bovenste Molen (Upper Mill) - formerly also known as Wolfsmolen - is located at the river Geul in the hamlet of Höfke near the village of Mechelen. It is a centre mill. Downstream in the same town there is another mill, which is logically referred to as the Onderste Molen (Lower Mill). The location at the Geul seems to be very suitable, as a water mill has been standing here for 750 years. The oldest building tracks in the present building date from the 15th century. In French times the mill was confiscated and sold publicly. Throughout the centuries the mill has served as a paper mill, flour mill and artificial wool mill. Artificial wool was made from disintegrated rags mixed with sheep's wool. The Bovenste Molen was a banmolen (mill soke). The inhabitants of the lord's territory were only allowed to have their grain ground in this mill. This in turn, of course, provided additional income for the landlord, who could levy tax on the grain. Since 1979 the mill is owned by the Vereniging tot Behoud van Natuurmonumenten (Society for Preservation of Nature Monuments in the Netherlands). Nowadays the mill is no longer in operation.

One of the most well-known building in the valley of the river Geul is probably the Volmolen just outside the village of Epen. The mill was part of the broadcloth industry in Vaals. Because of the location of the mill on the Geul, there was an abundance of water available for vollen - that’s why the mill is named Volmolen - the fulling of the wool. There was not such a large amount of water in the vicinity of Vaals. The history of the Epener mill dates back to the 17th century. In 1680 there was already talk of an oil mill. Later it is said to have been used as a bark mill. It was only in the last decades of the 18th century that it became a fulling mill. The urine and rancid butter needed for the fulling process was discharged into the river Geul after use. So it is not strange that the Volmolen was built outside the village centre of Epen. The complex is situated between the Geul and a dug mill brook. Water is pumped up into the brook to increase the decay of the water at the waterwheel. The buildings, a mill house and a farm with attached barns, surround a courtyard. The walls of the buildings are built in various types of locally broken stone. In 1872 the mill was converted into a flour mill. After several renovations and restorations the Volmolen was put into a flour mill in 1977. The mill is now owned by the Vereniging tot Behoud van Natuurmonumenten (Society for Preservation of Nature Monuments in the Netherlands). A foundation for the exploitation of the mill has a contract with a group of bakers for the supply of flour.

The Watermolen Hackfort is located on the estate Hackfort , close to the castle of the same name. The mill was first mentioned in the year 1442, while the current square stone building was built around 1700. The mill is equipped with a water wheel with blades and is powered by water from the Hackfortse Beek. The water wheel drives millstones to grind grain. The water mill also supplies electricity to the electricity network. In 1952 the mill was shut down because of the poor condition of the wheel and building. At that time the stream also contained too little water to power the mill. In 1981, the estate (with castle and mill) passed into the hands of the Natuurmonumenten and was refurbished. After the water board had ensured that sufficient water flowed through the Hackfortse Beek, a new water wheel was installed in 1998. Since that moment the mill has been in use. Volunteer millers are sawing wood and grinding grain for cattle feed on hydropower. On Saturdays and on special occasions the mill is open to visitors.

'D'n Olliemeulen' - watermill along the stream the 'Vloet' in Oploo, province of Noord-Brabant. The mill is dating back to the year of 1725; nowadays this former oil mill is used as a flour mill. Locals call the mill also 'Het watermolenken op het Peelbeexken'. Very nearby you also will find a post mill called 'De Korenbloem'.

'De Middelste Molen': old water mill along the Voorsterbeek or Loenense Molenbeek. The mill already started in the year of 1622 producing paper and still is a small, but working paper factory. It is the only authentic paper mill in the Netherlands.

Watermill nearby Castle Hackfort (Vorden) along the 'Hackfortse Beek'. The mill is dating back to the year 1700.

Ruitersmolen, watermill nearby Beekbergen, dating back to the year of 1606.

Singraven Water Mill: unique imposing 15th century watermill with three wheels, still used for grinding corn and sawing wood. See for more info: www.singraven.nl/nl/home

Wenum - watermill: built in or even before the year 1313 it was first a grain mill. In the 18th century the mill was used as a copper mill. In 1917 the stone building was built and the mill used again as a flourmill

Overijssel (Twente) , Delden: Twickeler Vaart with the Noordmolen (a watermill), nearby Twickel Castle.