The upper frame is from a Rem mill (semi-automatic). The lower tower was fitted onto the foundation of an iron mill that previously stood there. The mill used to stand in the Kleine Waal polder in Hoorn and was saved from demolition by the former curator of the Westfries Museum, Johan Kerkmeijer, and placed in the Juliana Park in Hoorn. The municipality of Hoorn later donated the mill to the De Westfriese Mills Foundation and that foundation, after restoration by the millers Coen Rood and Jan Beers, placed it in a more suitable location in Schellinkhout and gave it the name Johan. The upper house and tail will be renovated in 2012/'13.
The mill was placed on the existing concrete foundation of a disappeared iron water mill; the original concrete pump tank on which the mill stood was left in the park and later removed by the municipality. In its new location, the mill received, among other things, a new lower tower, a new centrifugal pump and a new blade cross. The upper house with upper wheel and bonkelaar is still largely original. The restoration was completed in 1987 and the De Westfriese Molens Foundation officially acquired ownership. Johan drains “De Pekel”, a lower area of approximately 2 hectares. where soil has been excavated in the past for dike reinforcement. The area is located on the Zuiderdijk (Westfriese Omringdijk) between the Grote Molen and the village of Schellinkhout. In the winter months it is flooded because it is used as an ice rink. In 1992, the millers lowered the pump because the impeller pump in the concrete foundation could hardly grind due to the low water level in the Pekel. The old pump was removed for this purpose and a new, smaller pump was installed outside the lower tower. The pump house is mounted on a wooden yoke, approximately 35 cm lower than in the old situation. The drive is done by means of a V-belt transmission, which provides an extra gear of 1.9. The head has thus been greatly increased.
The long drain pipe was fitted with a non-return valve close to the pump for better water drainage in irregular winds. There is no non-return valve at the end of the drain pipe because the pipe opens above the outside water level. The part of the transmission outside the sub-tower is covered by a removable wooden housing.
The result was that the mill could grind properly again. A pump construction has been made which can be called quite unique for such a mill type.
After the last relocation, the mill was named after Johan C. Kerkmeijer, founder of the Kerkmeijer-de Regtfonds named after him and his wife, which aims to contribute to the preservation of West Frisian cultural heritage.
June 2013 discovered that the upper house was missing.
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The upper house and the tail are in the shed at my house, but need to be partly renovated. That will take some time, I estimate next winter, so that the mill can be completed again in mid-2015.
Coen Rood, July 25, 2014.
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In 2015, the North Holland Mill Federation promised a subsidy of 770.50 euros for recovery from the Bankgiro Lottery Weidemolen Fund of De Hollandsche Molen. This was for painting the lower tower and refuge, and renewing the upper house, the tail beam and the weather vane.
After relocation in 2015, on July 16, 2015, during a pleasant gathering at De Grote Molen, the chairman of the Kerkmeijer-de Regt Foundation, Jaap Schaper and treasurer Nelleke Huisman, unveiled the mill on the Zuiderdijk on this summer day.
The enthusiastic men of the Ceres flour mill in Bovenkarspel will soon install the interior so that it can start working again.
Eric Zwijnenberg, September 22 2015.