De Hondsrug is a smock mill

Smock mill

The smock mill is a type of windmill that consists of a sloping, horizontally weatherboarded tower, usually with six or eight sides. It is topped with a roof or cap that rotates to bring the sails into the wind...

 in Weerdinge

Weerdinge

Weerdinge is a hamlet in the Netherlands and it is part of the Emmen municipality in Drenthe. Weerdinge has an altitude of 20 meters and a population of 780 ....

, Drenthe

Drenthe

Drenthe is a province of the Netherlands, located in the north-east of the country. The capital city is Assen. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and Germany to the east.-History:Drenthe, unlike many other parts of the Netherlands, has been a...

, which has been restored to working order. The mill was built in 1910 and is listed as a Rijksmonument

Rijksmonument

A rijksmonument is a National Heritage Site of the Netherlands, listed by the agency Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed acting for the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.-History and criteria:...

, number 14964.

History

The first windmill on this site was built in 1863. It ground buckwheat

Buckwheat

Buckwheat refers to a variety of plants in the dicot family Polygonaceae: the Eurasian genus Fagopyrum, the North American genus Eriogonum, and the Northern Hemisphere genus Fallopia. Either of the latter two may be referred to as "wild buckwheat"...

 and rye

Rye

Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder...

. The mill burnt down on 4 June 1870. A new mill was built to replace it but was burnt down in 1909. To replace that mill, the drainage mill Flikkezijlsterpoldermolen was moved from Farmsum

Farmsum

Farmsum is a town in the Dutch province of Groningen. It is a part of the municipality of Delfzijl.The statistical area "Farmsum", which may include the surrounding countryside, has a population of around 2,510.-References:...

, Groningen

Groningen (province)

Groningen [] is the northeasternmost province of the Netherlands. In the east it borders the German state of Niedersachsen , in the south Drenthe, in the west Friesland and in the north the Wadden Sea...

 by millwright

Millwright

A millwright is a craftsman or tradesman engaged with the construction and maintenance of machinery.Early millwrights were specialist carpenters who erected machines used in agriculture, food processing and processing lumber and paper...

 Van Ausselt of Coevorden

Coevorden

Coevorden is a municipality and a city in the northeastern Netherlands. During the municipal reorganisation in the province in 1998, Coevorden merged with Dalen, Sleen, Oosterhesselen and Zweeloo.- Population centers :...

. Repairs were made to the mill in 1938 and the following year the sails were fitted with streamlined leading egdes. In 1945, the mill lost a pair of sails and ceased work. It was restored in 1988. A new cap and sails were made and fitted, and the mill rethatched. The mill was then named De Hondsrug, having previously been nameless. It is named after a sandbank in Groningen.

Description

De Hoop is what the Dutch describe as an "achtkante beltmolen". It is a two storey smock mill on a two storey brick base. There is no stage, a bank of earth thrown up against the lower storey of the base provides access to the sails. The smock and cap are thatched. The mill is winded by a tailpole and winch. The four Common sails have a span of 22 metre and are carried in a cast iron windshaft which was cast by Prins van Oranje, Den Haag in 1896. The windshaft also carries the brake wheel which has 59 cogs. This drives the wallower (31 cogs) at the top of the upright shaft. At the bottom of the upright shaft, the great spur wheel, which has 108 cogs, drives the 1.5 metre diameter French Burr stones via a lantern pinion stone nut with 33 staves.