Inception

De Adriaan is a windmill in the Netherlands that burnt down in 1932 and was rebuilt in 2002. The original windmill dates from 1779 and the mill has been a distinctive part of the skyline of Haarlem for centuries.
The windmill was built on the foundations of the Goevrouwetoren by Adriaan de Booys, an industrial producer from Amsterdam. The Goevrouwetoren, or Goede Vrouwtoren (Goodwife Tower), had been the northern support of the city's Catrijnenpoort, a defencework over the River Spaarne. By the late 18th century, the gate was redundant due to the expansion of the city, and de Booys bought the tower and the land around it from the municipality of Haarlem on April 24, 1778. By reinforcing the foundations with wooden supporting poles, the mill was built to 34 metres above the level of the river, and above the surrounding city. De Adriaan was officially opened on May 19, 1779.

De Booys was granted permission to build a windmill to produce cement, paint, and tanbark. The windmill was built under the supervision of miller Henricus Ruijsch from Waddinxveen. De Booy earned the concession to be the sole producer of cement in the city for 25 years.

De Booys sold the windmill to Cornelis Kraan in 1802. The monopoly on cement had not been as lucrative as De Booys had hoped for; a competitor evaded the law by importing cement from Dordrecht. The windmill was sold for 1650 guilders, and Kraan converted the mill into a tobacco mill, to produce tobacco snuff. Kraan already owned a to