The Westphalian Road of Mills

Today the district of Minden-Lübbecke is the richest in mills in North-Rhine-Westphalia. More mills than in most of the other German landscapes have overcome the so-called „dying of mills“ in the years 1920 – 1930 and after the Second World War, more than a hundred water-, wind- and horse drawn mills in their different state of Conservation.
Watermills are placed where there was enough water at any time: in the „sieks“, small valleys filled with brooks, that we find at the bottom of the Weser-Wiehen-Mountain Chain and near the rivers in the plains such as the Werre, Aue, Gehle and near the Great Diek-River where the water has been dammed up.
It depended on the quantity and on the level of water which kind of mill could be built. So there are water mills where there flows water from above onto the paddleboard, others that get the water half level with the mill and thus are turned round and those which only dip into the flowing water and are turned round by the water pressing on the paddles.
Where water was lacking or couldn’t flow with equal power but where wind blew from all directions that’s where they built wind-mills. They mainly are situated in the large smooth open country in the north of our district, whereas only a few were built south of the mountain chain.
Among the wind-mills of our district there are three especially striking ones. The main wooden part of the mill including its working parts lie on a hug beam, the „Pfahl“, supported by a cross-like ramp. This mill is turned into the wind by a long lever, the „Stert“.
The Dutch wind-mills have foundations made of stone an a wooden shingle framework. Only the ‚kap’, supporting the sails, is turned into the wind. Today this is predominantly done automatically by a fan blower, an sometimes by rope-pulling or by an old-fashioned kind of plough-handle „Stert“.

There are only two horse-mills today that are made to revolve by horses on a rope of a lever.
The extraordinary variety of mill types in the district of Minden-Lübbecke that are different in their kind of construction, outfit and function proves the artisan’sability and efficiency of a millwright. Thanks to the traditionally minded old miller families, their mills have been preserved up to the present time.
The mills form a connection with the history of important handicrafts of former times like that of a miller an a millwright. Moreover they reveal an essential part of cultural history, history of inventions and history of technics. The thousand-year-old history of mill-wrighting in the district of Minden-Lübbecke – the first mill that has been mentioned by documents when Milo was bishop here (969 – 996) was situated in Levern – at the same time throws light on its territorial, economic and social history. We also discover the national character in manners and customs.

But not only are mills important witnesses of times gone by, they are invaluable technical an cultural monuments and they also characterize the landscape. While the water mills according to the low river-beds of the flowing waters are found in the valleys, the wind mills surmount the landscape and may be seen from afar. As a symbol of old farmland they spread a spezial atmosphere throughout the seasons.

In order to preserve the picture of a spezial intensified, diversified and unique landscape the district Minden-Lübbecke intends to protect and restore its most important and precious mills, more than thirty altogether. In examplary cooperation of the representatives and the administration of the district, the towns and boroughs with the Westphalian department for monuments, the mill owners and artisans and last but not least the local authorities and associations-supported by the land North-Rhine-Westphalia and the country association Westphalia-Lippe – eighteen mills have been restored since December 1981.
The „association of mills“ in the district Minden-Lübbecke founded in December 1978 has taken  care of the mills.
Its „mill group“ – mainly young people trained by the experienced old millers – look after the mills, make them work again and do an examplary, unpaid service to the preservation of monuments.

At the windmills Südhemmern and Eickhorst they have reerected the old bakery in framework. Bread is made again in the old stone-ovens. Children of our highly technical century may be shown vividly how – throughout the centuries – grain growing in the fields around has been ground in the mills and baked and made to what we put onto the table as „Our Daily Bread“.
Nineteen windmills, worthy of restauration, are situated alone in the surroundings of the towns Petershagen, Minden and the borough of Hille, which has got the sails in its coat of arms. Because of the great number of mills it was easy to understand – similar to the other landscapes that invite people to visit their sights with names like „road of castles“, „baroque roads“, „road of fairy tales“ and whatever they are called – why they created a „road of mills“.

The coloured „map of mills of the district Minden-Lübbecke“ was first published in autumn 1978 and in the meantime it has been reprinted more than 100.000 times. Thousands of visitors on the „Westphalian Road of Mills“ have already been shown the way to the many remarkable mills of the district, worth a visit. The revisited map not only mentions the mills to the north-east and north-west of the district, but also those situated south of the Weser- and Wiehen-mountains. It invites people to go on small tours and take their time in sightseeing the mills and in enjoying the marvellous landscape around.

Not only because of its great number of preservable mills, but also because of the examplary effort and success to preserve them the district Minden-Lübbecke has gained a reputation beyond its boundaries as the „mill district of North-Rhine-Westphalia“.
National and international newspapers, as well as radio and TV have constantly drawn the attention to it in hundreds of reports. Specialists too, have acknowledged the great work done to the monuments. If in future the sails and waterwheels turn again at a great number of mills, it won’t only be a great Pleasure for its inhabitants but also an invitation to the great many visitors at health resorts, the hikers and tourists to come to the beautiful mountain and river sites of the mill district Minden-Lübbecke.

translated by Elke Orlowski

   from the German version of

Wilhelm Brepohl