De Onderneming (; ) 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 ...

in Witmarsum, Friesland,

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

which was built in 1850 and is in working order. It is used as a training mill. The mill 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 ...

History

''De Onderneming'' was built in 1850, probably by

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

Van der Meer of

Harlingen, Friesland Harlingen (; ) is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and a city in the northern Netherlands, in the province of Friesland. Overview Harbor Harlingen is located on a tip of the Friesland coast that sticks out a bit into th ...

. The foundation stone was laid on 17 September. In 1896, the mill was bought by Geurt Stoffels. It passed to his son Heimen in 1956. Following Heimen's death in 1968, the mill fell into disrepair. It was bought by the Gemeente Wûnseradiel. Restoration took place in 1970-71. Further restorations took place in 1988 and 1994. The mill is in the ownership of the Stichting tot Behoud van Momumenten in de gemeente Súdwest Fryslân. Used as a training mill, it is listed as a

, № 39437.

Description

''De Onderneming'' is what the Dutch describe as a "Stellingmolen". It is a smock mill on a wooden base. The stage is above ground level. The smock and cap are

thatch Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, Phragmites, water reed, Cyperaceae, sedge (''Cladium mariscus''), Juncus, rushes, Calluna, heather, or palm branches, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away fr ...

ed. The mill is winded by tailpole and winch. The sails are

Common sails Windmills are powered by their sails. Sails are found in different forms, from primitive common sails to the advanced patent sails. Jib sails The jib sail is found in Mediterranean countries and consists of a simple triangle of cloth wound r ...

, fitted with the Fok system on their leading edges. They have a span of . The sails are carried on a cast-iron ''windshaft'', which was cast by Fabrikaat De Muinck Keizer of

Martenshoek Martenshoek () is a neighbourhood of Hoogezand and former village in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is located in the municipality of Midden-Groningen, about 2 km west of the town of Hoogezand.''ANWB Topografische Atlas Nederland'', Topo ...

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

in 1891. The ''windshaft'' also carries the ''brake wheel'' which has 60 cogs. This drives the ''wallower'' (31 cogs) at the top of the ''upright shaft''. At the bottom of the ''upright shaft'' is the ''great spur wheel'', which has 75 cogs. The ''great spur wheel'' drives a pair of diameter Cullen

millstone Millstones or mill stones are stones used in gristmills, used for triturating, crushing or, more specifically, grinding wheat or other grains. They are sometimes referred to as grindstones or grinding stones. Millstones come in pairs: a s ...

s via a ''lantern pinion stone nut'' which has 22 staves. A pair of Cullen millstones is driven via a ''lantern pinion stone nut'' which has 19 staves. Two pairs of Peak millstones, of and diameter, are driven via ''lantern pinion stone nuts'' which have 22 staves each.

Millers

* Geurt Stoffels (1896-1956) * Heimen Stoffels (1956–64)

Public access

''De Onderneming'' is open to the public on Saturday between 09:00 and 12:00, or by appointment.

References

{{Dutch Windmills Windmills in Friesland Windmills completed in 1850 Smock mills in the Netherlands Grinding mills in the Netherlands Agricultural buildings in the Netherlands Rijksmonuments in Friesland Octagonal buildings in the Netherlands