Working watermills in Sittard-Geleen

On the fringes of Sittard, close to the nature reserve of Schwienswei, is the historic complex of Stadbroeker mill. A permit was issued for the construction of a watermill here by the William Duke of Jülich in 1582. From 1846 it came into the hands of the Roufs family. They sold wheat and rye flour throughout Zuid-Limburg and in neighbouring Belgium and Germany and they replaced the waterwheel in 1907 by a turbine with a grinding mechanism. In 1955, Roufs sold the complex to the town of Sittard. This unique complex was restored to its former glory in 1990, including the water-powered propulsion.

The mill’s history dates back to 1348 when the mill was the property in fief of the Lords of Valkenburg and later the Dukes of Jülich. In that period, the mill ground cereal and was part of the Ophovenerhof, the farmstead opposite. The mill later served as an oil mill and in the 19th century was converted into a corn mill. At the end of 1973, the Jacob Kritzraedt foundation decided to purchase the Ophovener mill and extensive renovations followed. After a second restoration in 1998, the mill resumed its age-old activities, powered by the flow of the Geleenbeek.

Op de Kingbeek in Grevenbicht is the oldest known and only surviving of the four watermills along the Kingbeek stream. The first known mention of it was in 1548. The story goes that the mill was built as a corn mill to provide the local villagers with flour. For the construction of the mill and diversion of the stream a cooperative of 24 members was set up. Every member of the cooperative, which existed for no fewer than three centuries, received two weeks’ milling rights. These milling rights were sold off publicly in 1820, after which the mill came into the hands of various different owners. In 1887 the paddle wheel was replaced by a turbine. The owners at the time, the Roelofs family, installed a steam engine for auxiliary power, hence the chimney in the side wall of the mill.

De Biesenhof is a typical Limburgse square-plan farmstead on the fringes of Geleen, in an area popular with walkers alongside the Geleenbeek, a tributary of the Meuse. The longest surviving document referring to De Biesenhof dates from 1259, when the Order of Teutonic Knights founded a commandery here. In 1498 it was taken into use as a tenant farm. During French occupation in 1795, the farmstead was sold to private individuals. Until the 1970s it fell into the hands of various different families. Soon after, it fell into disrepair. At the end of 2004, the farmstead was renovated and converted into a hospitality venue.