Windmills

The vast majority of today's Öland windmills are stumb mills from the end of the 18th century or the beginning of the 19th century. With this type of mill the hole building is turned around against the wind. The model is very ancient and windmills with a similar construction have appeared in Sweden from the time around 1300. The first time an Öland mill is mentioned in text is in 1546. We do not know how old the oldest of today's preserved mills is. There are probably mills that at least have certain parts that have been preserved from the 17th century or earlier.

At the end of the 17th century, there were 375 windmills and 188 water-powered mills  Because the water supply was poor, the windmill took over. Today, no water mill is preserved. During the 18th century, the number of windmills more than quadrupled. The increase continued during the 19th century so that around 1850 the maximum number was reached around 2000.

According to the Öland priest Abraham Ahlqvist, the mills were the densest in Vickleby parish, where there were 77. Another Öland priest, Nils Isak Löfgren, said that the area's oak forest was used to build mills. "For what reason, nowadays instead of forest, you see a large amount of mills in a row between Weckleby and Thorslunda churches." According to Löfgren, each farmer had two mills, one for wheat and one for rye.

Around the turn of the century in 1900, the number of windmills decreased drastically on Öland. The small post mills were knocked out by new technically superior mills - first the large Dutch mills, then steam mills and mills powered by crude oil. Eventually there were also electric mills and mills that could be connected to the farm's tractor.

In the middle of the 19th century, the post mills faced competition from the larger and more efficient Dutch mills, which were usually moved to Öland from the mainland. The new mill type is originally believed to have developed in Holland during the 1570s. The construction of the Dutch mill differs from the post mill in that only the top part, the hood, which is rotatable. Around the turn of the century in 1900, there were about 30 Dutch mills on the island. Today, about ten remain, such as the Drottningen at Björnhovda and Sandviks kvarn.

Some post mills are larger, such as Kvarnkungen at Björnhovda and Näsby tullkvarn.