Wichers and his group were able to gain an exemption by selecting a heavily damaged mill known as De Zwaan that had been in operation in Vinkel Netherlands since being moved there in 1884 by a family named Van Schayk.

De Zwaan was at the center of a controversy, with three local agencies unable to determine the future of the damaged windmill.

The Dutch government decided to sell it to Wichers for $2800, making De Zwaan the last windmill to leave the Netherlands.

The city erected a raised base rather than the mound of earth it had been set on in Vinkel so as to restore it to its original design when it stood in Krommenie.

Additionally not all online sources have revised the original build date of De Zwaan.

After the publication of her book, De Zwaan: The True Story of America's Authentic Dutch Windmill, Alisa Crawford wrote the nomination of De Zwaan to the National Register of Historic Places on behalf of the City of Holland.

To do so, city officials needed permission from the Dutch government, which protects windmills as national monuments.

Willard C. Wichers, Midwest director for the Netherlands Information Service, led negotiations with the Dutch over a three-year period.

In June 1964 he traveled to the Netherlands to find a suitable mill and finalize arrangements to buy and move it.