Hofenmühle
Encyclopedia
The Hofenmühle is an 18th-century water mill in the municipality of Wohlen
near Berne
, Switzerland.
The existence of the mill, which is private property, is attested since 1719. After the 1920 damming of the River Aar that created the Wohlensee reservoir, the water wheel
was replaced with a Brown, Boveri & Cie
turbine
. The mill ceased to operate in 1994 following the retirement of the miller; since then, local craftsmen and artists have settled in the buildings. In 2007 and 2008, a 20 kW micro hydro
power plant was installed in it.
As the hamlet Hofen, the mill compound has been listed in the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
since 1943. It is also listed as a heritage site of national significance in the November 2008 review draft of the Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
.
Wohlen bei Bern
Wohlen bei Bern is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.-Geography:Wohlen has an area of . Of this area, 55% is used for agricultural purposes, while 32.6% is forested...
near Berne
Berne
The city of Bern or Berne is the Bundesstadt of Switzerland, and, with a population of , the fourth most populous city in Switzerland. The Bern agglomeration, which includes 43 municipalities, has a population of 349,000. The metropolitan area had a population of 660,000 in 2000...
, Switzerland.
The existence of the mill, which is private property, is attested since 1719. After the 1920 damming of the River Aar that created the Wohlensee reservoir, the water wheel
Water wheel
A water wheel is a machine for converting the energy of free-flowing or falling water into useful forms of power. A water wheel consists of a large wooden or metal wheel, with a number of blades or buckets arranged on the outside rim forming the driving surface...
was replaced with a Brown, Boveri & Cie
Brown, Boveri & Cie
Brown, Boveri & Cie was a Swiss group of electrical engineering companies.It was founded in Baden, Switzerland, in 1891 by Charles Eugene Lancelot Brown and Walter Boveri who worked at the Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon. In 1970 BBC took over the Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon...
turbine
Turbine
A turbine is a rotary engine that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work.The simplest turbines have one moving part, a rotor assembly, which is a shaft or drum with blades attached. Moving fluid acts on the blades, or the blades react to the flow, so that they move and...
. The mill ceased to operate in 1994 following the retirement of the miller; since then, local craftsmen and artists have settled in the buildings. In 2007 and 2008, a 20 kW micro hydro
Micro hydro
Micro hydro is a term used for hydroelectric power installations that typically produce up to 100 kW of electricity. These installations can provide power to an isolated home or small community, or are sometimes connected to electric power networks....
power plant was installed in it.
As the hamlet Hofen, the mill compound has been listed in the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
The Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites is part of a 1981 Ordinance of the Swiss Federal Council implementing the Federal Law on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage.-Sites of national importance:-Types:...
since 1943. It is also listed as a heritage site of national significance in the November 2008 review draft of the Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
The Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance is a register of some 8,300 items of cultural property in Switzerland...
.