The Hondsdijksemolen was originally built in 1644 for the city of Leyden. It was sold to the Hondsdijkse polder in 1693, after the mill that originally managed the 425 hectare polder was burned down. The Hondsijksemolen was bought by the Rhinkeland Mill Foundation in 1966, and subsequently restored to working order. Polder mills are used to drain water away from areas of flat land that have been isolated from the sea by a network of dikes.