Two windmill dedications linked by satellite

On May 5th in the USA and the Netherlands

FULTON, Illinois - The skyline of this community on the levee of the Mississippi has gained an unique addition since its newly erected 90-foot grain windmill was outfitted with blades. Lowlands Management of Amstelveen which supervises the project, expects to complete the windmill - it sits on a mound and is a copy of the one located at Vorstenbosch, North Brabant, the Netherlands - before its scheduled dedication early May 2000.

Organizers want the Fulton ceremony to coincide with a similar happening in the Netherlands, the two events link by satellite. The May 5th dedication also is the start of a three-day Dutch Days festival, Fulton's 26th. The festival usually attracts crowds of 12,000 to 15,000 but a greater number is expected this year.

One third of the 3,000 inhabitants of the Western Illinois town is estimated to be of Dutch origin. Fulton was founded in the 1830s. The first Dutch immigrants settled in this area in the 1860s.