Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Deschodt Mill, also known as the Riele Mill, is a windmill located in Wormhout, northern department. Built in 1756 by the carpenter Philippe François Desmyttère for the farmer Ignace Coudeville, it is characterized by an inscription in Dutch on its structure. This pivot-type flour mill, with four wings of 23 meters wide, was initially set up in a rural environment, between the said places of Riet Veld and Kieken Put, about 3 km southeast of the village.

In 1891, the mill was moved 200 metres by its owner. In 1921 he was bought by Abel Deschodt, who began his restoration and installed a diesel engine there in 1939. After being bequeathed to the municipality of Wormhout in 1966, it was restored between 1982 and 1983 by the Regional Association of Friends of Mills (ARAM). Since 1977, the mill has been included in the inventory of historical monuments, demonstrating its heritage importance.

The Deschodt Mill illustrates the evolution of milling techniques and the adaptation of windmills to local agricultural needs. Its mechanism, always functional, allows to understand the central role of these infrastructures in the production of flour and the rural economy of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Today, it remains a symbol of the industrial and architectural heritage of Hauts-de-France.

External links