The Windmotor Stokebrandsweerd is an American windmill in the floodplain of the river IJssel near Zutphen. Built in 1927, the windmill was used to drain the floodplain until 1968, when it was decommissioned due to, among other things, drainage of the summer dike.
This windmill is the only remaining example in the province of Gelderland. The mill was maintained between 2004 and 2006 and then reinstalled, but is no longer grinding capable. The pumping function has not been restored.
On June 30, 1927, the municipality of Zutphen received permission from the Ministry of Water Resources to build a windmill. Although the lands in the Stokebrandsweerd were in the municipality of Warnsveld, the mill was located just across the border in the municipality of Zutphen. The five parcel owners of the pasture lands in the Stokebrandsweerd (including three farmers and the municipality of Zutphen) were jointly responsible for the purchase (with a total sum of Fl. 2400) and maintenance of the mill.
In 1967, the last costs for maintenance and operation were calculated, therefore it is assumed that the mill has been in disuse since then. Mayor and aldermen decided in 1977 to have the structure, which was in poor condition, removed. This finally did not happen until 2004.
On November 21, 2005, the municipality of Zutphen decided to have the rare mill reinstated.
The mill was built by the Bakker brothers in IJlst and is of the Record #20 type. The diameter of the sails wheel is 6 meters. There is a head of 1.5 meters and the stated maximum water yield is 175 to 200 cubic meters per hour.
manufacture: Gebr. Bakker at IJlst
– built in 1927
– Type Record #20
– Sails wheel diameter 6 meters
– Head of lift 1.5 meters
– Water yield maximum 175-200 m3 per hour
Beginning in 1927, the mill served to pump excess rain and seepage water from the IJssel River from the floodplain. This was for the purpose of increasing the hay yield of the pastures in the Stokenbrandsweerd of five plot owners. At the time, the owners were jointly responsible for the purchase and annual maintenance. The five owners were the three farmers H.O. Wijers, G, Kets and L. Koppel, together with Het oude en Nieuwe Gasthuis (plot the Remmelweide) and De Gemeente Zutphen (plot Blisweerd on the Helbergen).
Starting in 1968, the mill went out of operation due in part to the calving of the summer dike.
It is currently not rotating/grinding capable.
Dirk-Jan Abelskamp, Sept. 5. 2013.
The lands in the Stokebrandsweerd belonged to the municipality of Warnsveld, but the extraction engine came just across the border within the municipality of Zutphen. E. Enserink, superintendent of the lands, drew up a drainage plan. The official list price of the mill was fl. 1825. For this price Zutphen received, compared to the hitherto common design, a mill of the type “Record” with “a large gear and heavy construction”. This new type had recently been shown at an exhibition in Leeuwarden and because of the scoop, Zutphen received another discount on the price of fl 1100. Together with the cost of the foundation to be made by the municipality of ƒ 1450 and some other provisions, Enserink arrived at a total investment of ƒ 2400. On June 30, 1927 the Municipality of Zutphen received an official permit from the Ministry of Waterways and Public Works “to make a windmill for draining some meadows near Huize Stokebrand”. On July 20, 1927, the Ministry of Waterways granted a permit to preserve, raise and strengthen the quay.
In 1961, it was found that “rascals had thrown a clinker stone at the bottom of the pump box,” causing the windmill to malfunction in the summer. In 1963, a new agreement between the landowners was drawn up and the cost-sharing key was revised.
By the end of 1967, the windmill must have been put out of operation, because from 1968 no more fees were charged for maintenance and operation. In 1977, B&W decided to have the windmill removed due to its deplorable condition.
At the end of 2004, the windmill was finally dismantled and transported to the fa. Las- en constructiewerken Mensink in Hengelo (OV.) for restoration.
The windmill was returned in the summer of 2006 and will be put back into operation. Given the rare character and the cultural-historical and monumental value of the mill, the council of the Municipality of Zutphen took a decision to this effect on November 21, 2005. The pump operation will not be restored. However, another attempt will be made to dig up the pump, which must be located next to the culvert in the foundation of the mill.
Source: “The 1927 drainage plan of the Stokebrandsweerd,” article by Joep Delnoij in Zutphen, 2006 no. 2, pp. 48-52, Historical Society of Zutphen.
It is not entirely clear whether the wind motor was originally equipped with a galvanized coating. In any case, during the restoration, hot-dip galvanizing was deliberately chosen as the conservation method. In the process, many “old” profiles were reused, which is clearly visible in the characteristic surface structure of the zinc coating. Although the windmill was realized at the time as a technically necessary facility and was not intended to stand the test of time forever, the galvanized coating will now ensure that this beautiful icon from days gone by will be preserved for decades to come.
