The town of Straelen is located on the left lower Lower Rhine on the plain between the Maas dunes in the west and the Niers lowlands in the east. On one of the hills, north of Straelen, the former windmill on Gieselberg stands in the middle of a meadow. The sandy plain, which was formerly a heath and moor landscape, is now agricultural land with horticulture and flower farms. The Niers flows through the plain to the east of the town. Natural forests and marshland have been preserved near the river.
The Dutch windmill has an octagonal conical mill tower. The base is made of brick and whitewashed. The rest of the wooden tower is clad in shingles. The hood has been preserved, but the windmill blades and codend are no longer there. Remnants of the compass rose can still be seen on the hood.
In 1848, a Mr. van Schayck applied for permission to build a new Dutch windmill a short distance from the gates of the town of Straelen. However, this was rejected. Only after a new building site had been found on the Gieselberg was permission granted in 1851 to build a new wooden mill.
The mill was in operation as a grain mill for around 100 years. In 1952 it burned down due to a lightning strike during a thunderstorm and was subsequently shut down. The owner at the time of the fire was the miller Tophoven.
In 1968, Heinrich Brimmers from Straelen bought the mill. Although the mill was rebuilt, it collapsed in 1970.
In the following years, 1971/72, the mill was rebuilt again and converted into a holiday home for leisure and relaxation.
The mill on the Gieselberg has been a listed building since 2005 and is registered in the city of Straelen's monument list under number 85.