De Wachter

De Wachter is a smock mill in Zuidlaren, Drenthe, which has been restored to working order. The mill was built in 1851 and is listed as a Rijksmonument, number 41064.
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 40 horsepower . 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 bakery, a blacksmith'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. There is also a waggon maker's workshop. These are all presented as they would have appeared in 1895.

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