Discover Eystrup: Mills, Motorcycles and Mustard History

Eystrup brings together local history, technology and an annual mill festival. The Historic Trail invites you to explore the town on your own; the DKW Motorcycle Museum focuses on motorcycles and sidecars, while the festival at the “Margarethe” windmill is a special event in the annual calendar. This lets you plan your trip around your particular interests.

Explore Eystrup and its history at your own pace

The Eystrup Historic Trail follows a tourist signposting system and lets you tour the town on your own, preferably by bicycle. This is one way to explore Eystrup independently and focus on its local history. No specific duration or route length is given; for your planning, the main recommendation is to take the tour by bicycle if possible.

Eystrup’s history also includes its mustard: Johann Ludwig Lehmann began making mustard in Eystrup in 1809. The historic site of the former Eystruper Brinksitzerstelle No. 67 is now at Hauptstraße 56. “Im 2-Takt” is located on the grounds of the Leman mustard factory in Eystrup. These local details offer different starting points for exploring Eystrup’s history, without implying that mustard is produced there today.

Motorcycles and the mill festival

The Eystrup DKW Motorcycle Museum houses around 60 DKW motorcycles and sidecars from the prewar and postwar period, spanning 1920 to 1977. The collection thus brings together different vehicle types within a clearly defined historical period. If you are interested in the history of technology, the museum offers a distinct focus within Eystrup’s local history.

The “Margarethe” windmill hosts its annual mill festival on Whit Monday. The program includes a Low German church service and an explanation of how the historic mill works, given by the miller. On this festival day, religious tradition and a practical explanation of milling technology come together.

Coffee and cake, grilled food and homemade strawberry punch are also served at the mill festival. The specific food and drinks may vary. If the festival is the reason for your trip, check the date and program for your plans; Whit Monday is the recurring occasion, not a calendar date that stays the same each year.

Culture in the wider destination of Nienburg

The cultural offerings in the wider destination of Nienburg extend beyond Eystrup. The Nienburg Museum traces the development of the Middle Weser region, from the presence of the first people to the present day, across three historic buildings. Its main building is the Fresenhof, a manor house dating from the 16th century. The museum also includes the Asparagus Museum, the Biedermeier Garden and a lapidarium; the Neoclassical villa offers further insights into the 19th century.

Nienburg’s old town offers another perspective on history: half-timbered façades, Weser Renaissance façades and brickwork shape the townscape of a city with a 1,000-year history. In Bücken, the collegiate church of St. Maternian and St. Nicolai houses important works of art, including a triumphal cross dating from 1230 and richly illustrated stained-glass windows from the 13th century. These examples add to the history of the wider Nienburg destination, while the mill festival, trail, mustard history and DKW collection are Eystrup’s own themes.

For planning your trip, the key factor is the reason for your visit: the mill festival takes place on Whit Monday, while the Historic Trail lets you tour the town independently, and the museum houses a collection spanning 1920 to 1977. These themes offer different ways to shape a stay in Eystrup and explore the wider Nienburg destination.

Discover more destinations: Hassel, Hoya, Gandesbergen, Schweringen, Hoyerhagen, Warpe, Bücken, Hilgermissen.

Back to the overview of the wider destination: County of Hoya.