The 'De Put' windmill gets its name from miller Jan Jansz. Put, owner of the mill that stood on this very spot in the 17th century. The mill was rebuilt in the 1980s.

The windmill stands on the north bank of the Rhine. It was not until the 17th century that people started to build on the riverbank. The city was flourishing and the population was growing fast. Just after the Relief of Leiden in 1574, the city had 10,000 inhabitants, and by 1600 this number had reached 24,000. Leiden was the biggest city after Amsterdam, and it was overcrowded. So the municipal authorities decided to expand this side of the city.