Boxdorfer Windmühle

In 1839, a man named Mönch from Zaschendorf built a wooden Bockwindmühle. This Bockwindmühle was on Boxdorfer Galgenberg. This marked the beginning of the Boxdorfer Windmühle’s story. The Boxdorfer Windmühle has seen a lot of changes over the years. Originally, Boxdorf and Reichenberg farmers had to travel to Plauenscher Grund to mill their grain. This changed with the Saxon Constitution of 1831. The burden of this compulsory milling was lifted. The first mill on this site was a wooden post mill. It could grind eight to ten hundredweight of flour daily. In 1847, Friedrich Wilhelm Seeländer bought the mill. Tragedy struck in 1849. The mill burned down during a thunderstorm. Seeländer sold the remains to his brother. His brother, Heinrich Christoph, rebuilt it as a stone tower mill. You can still see the year 1849 engraved above the original entrance. Friedrich Wilhelm returned in 1855 and took back the Boxdorfer Windmühle. Around 1860, the mill house was destroyed, likely by arson. The current house was built afterward. The Boxdorfer Windmühle even played a role in the German War of 1866. The Saxon army occupied it. As a Prussian, the miller was forbidden to grind grain for the enemy. Years later, a lightning strike in 1887 damaged the mill. Repairs were deemed too costly. The rise of large-scale milling operations made the small mill obsolete. The owner, Mr. Müller, opened a pub in the mill. He also added a wooden viewing platform, later replaced by the stone one you see today. In 1921, Paul Gantze acquired the mill and installed an electric grinding mill. He also added a small hall to the adjacent house, turning it into a popular restaurant. The Boxdorfer Windmühle continued to evolve. It became a school, a post office radio station, and even a radio station for the Society for Sport and Technology. Today, this 13-meter-high tower serves as a local history museum and observation tower. The viewing platform offers the highest point in Moritzburg. While the original milling equipment is gone, some millstones remain. The square in front of the mill hosts events like the annual German Mill Day.