Heusden Fortress, Museum Het Gouverneurshuis Exhibition “Heusden Windmills: Machines Made of Wood”

When people think of the Netherlands, windmills often come to mind. In Heusden and the surrounding area, too, they have been part of the landscape for centuries. In the new exhibition “Windmills of Heusden: Machines Made of Wood,” the Museum Het Gouverneurshuis shows the role these windmills played in the daily lives of our ancestors—and what they still mean to us today.

Windmills were the first machines powered not by humans or animals, but by an external energy source. As such, they have greatly influenced and transformed society. “They are marvels of engineering with an impact that we easily underestimate,” according to the museum.

Three Functions
The exhibition focuses on three important functions of windmills in the region: windmills for controlling water levels in the polders, windmills for food production, and windmills for industrial applications. Visitors will discover which windmills once stood in Heusden, how long they have been there, and why they were built.

Touch Table
A special feature of the exhibition is the interactive table in the center of the room. It displays all the windmills in the municipality of Heusden, both those that no longer exist and those that still stand.

Let yourself be amazed by the story of the mills of Heusden, our wooden machines!