The listed Farmer's Mill

In 1840 Johannes Deprez (of the Oosthofmolen in Snellegem) built a water mill next to the Waalbeek or Meerschbeek to grind grain and store oil. This watermill was converted into a house in 1920. In 1858, Seraphin Deprez, son of Johannes, had a stone windmill built near the watermill. Three other farmers became co-owners of the mill and so he obtained the name 'Boerenmolen' (Farmer's Mill). He lived up to that name, because after Seraphinus the mill came into the hands of ten local farmers and later again of three, before finally becoming the property of the Desopper family in 1921. The windmill remained in operation until 1961. Since 1940 it had been equipped with a concealed outer rod.

As soon as the mill came to a standstill, the decline quickly began to take shape. In 1963, a storm wind destroyed the gallery. In 1971 the plan was conceived to gradually restore the mill, but nothing came of it. In January 1976, after a storm, the seat cover and the axle with the reticle and upper wheel were removed. The mill was dismantled the same year. The mill was protected as a monument in 1981 and the wider area, including part of the Waalbeek, as a landscape. In 1995, the mill carried out some useful conservation work by the Molenwacht West-Vlaanderen, including the installation of an emergency roof and the removal of the harmful ivy vegetation on the walls. The accompanying house has also been restored. However, there are no concrete prospects for a complete restoration of the mill yet.

Contact details:
- The listed Farmer's Mill
- Oude Bruggenweg 3, 8490 Snellegem

Vl. Toeristisch bezienswaardigheden