Nederland - Oele, De Oldemeule

The hamlet of Oele has a watermill since the 14th century, although De Oldemeule is dating back to the year of 1690. The first known owners were the counts of Bentheim, who issued the mill, the 'Ole Mole', as fief. Over the centuries, the mill was owned by the noble families Van Bevervoorde (1334 - 1684) and Von Münchhausen (1684 - 1804). After that the mill changed owners several times and from 1880 it belonged to the Twickel Estate.

In the past there also was an oil mill nearby, but this was demolished in 1900. During World War II the mill was still used for grinding grain, but after the war the mill was in decline. Nowadays De Oldemeule is owned by the municipality of Hengelo, which reinstated the mill in 1979. Every now and then the mill is open ofr visitors. During the last couple of years, new millers have been trained to operate the mill.