Weltermolen - Heerlen

The Weltermolen is one of the most beautiful water mills in the Netherlands and also a very old one: it is known that it already existed in 1381 as part of the House Strijthagen to Welten. For a long time it was a so-called ban mill. This meant that farmers were obliged to have their grain ground in the Welten mill.

Since the second half of the 18th century, the water mill suffered from a water shortage, especially in dry summers. Therefore, two gathering ponds were constructed around the mill. This water supply from the Geleenbeek allowed the mill to keep running at all times. One of the ponds was filled in 1916, causing the remaining pond to run dry more often. After one milling day, it took about a week before the pond was filled with water again. Thus, the mill's ability to run was increasingly limited. In 1925 the then miller decided to use an electric motor to drive the mill. In 1945, the mill was officially shut down.

It was fully restored in the 1990s and the picturesque Weltermolen, which is still located on the gathering pond, is regularly open to the public.

©Kees van Drie