De Zwaan (windmill)

De Zwaan is an authentic Dutch windmill in the city of Holland, Michigan. The windmill's name is Dutch for The Swan or Graceful Bird. It is the only authentic, working Dutch windmill in the United States. De Zwaan is located in Windmill Island municipal park.

History

De Zwaan was first was erected in Krommenie, Netherlands in 1761. In 1889, it was moved to Vinkel, Netherlands and reconstructed there.

When Holland, Michigan residents Willard Wichers and Carter Brown were looking for a way to pay homage to the city's Dutch heritage, they began a project to bring a Dutch windmill to the United States. However, many of these monumental structures had suffered serious damage in World War II. As a result, the Dutch government had placed a ban on the sale of windmills outside the Netherlands. Wichers and his group were able to gain an exemption by selecting a heavily damaged mill known as De Zwaan. De Zwaan was at the center of a controversy, with three local agencies unable to determine the future of the damaged windmill. The Dutch government decided to sell it to Wichers for $2800, making De Zwaan the last windmill to leave the Netherlands.

In October, 1964, De Zwaan arrived aboard the Prins Willem van Oranje. It was unloaded at the Muskegon harbor and transported by truck to Windmill Island in Holland. It took approximately 6 months to reconstruct the mill.

In April 1965, the 125-foot (38 m) windmill was formally dedicated on Windmill Island, a 36-acre (150,000 m²) site reclaimed from a swamp on the eastern end of Lake Macatawa. It is open from late April through early October.

When winds are favorable (15 to 20 mph (7 to 9 m/s) from the west), De Zwaan's 80-foot (24 m) diameter blades are usually in motion.

One of the two grindstones from De Zwaan.

External links

• Windmill Island Gardens - official site
• About Holland PDF
• Windmill marks 40 years in Holland
• Windmill De Zwaan more than just a symbol of Holland City’s roots