Bayerel

Origin of the name Bayerel

Name origin: the name is not explained in the sources consulted. The mill of Bayerel is mentioned from 29 April 1416.

Founding of Bayerel

Bayerel is a locality of the municipality of Val-de-Ruz on the Seyon, between Engollon and Saules. Before the merger of 1 January 2013, the mill stood on the territory of the former municipality of Fenin-Vilars-Saules, while the houses on the Route de Bayerel, a little further west, belonged to the former municipality of Engollon. No founder is known: the history of the place is that of its mill, driven by a millrace fed by the Seyon and attested in 1416 under Guillaume d'Aarberg-Valangin. The site combines two old activities of the Neuchâtel Mountains, milling and timber sawing.

History of Bayerel

1416. On 29 April, Richard Quinchi renders the accounts of the mill of Bayerel under Guillaume d'Aarberg-Valangin; he owes thirty pounds and fifteen Lausanne shillings for the sale of grain and two pigs, plus a due of two pounds of wax. This is the oldest surviving mention of the mill.

1434. The miller of Bayerel is named Peterman d'Engollon; he owes twenty hemines of wheat and one and a half muids of the same grain.

1506. When Claude d'Aarberg and Guillemette de Vergy create the chapter of the collegiate church of Valangin, the annual due of the mill of Bayerel is among the revenues granted to the institution.

1553. Pierre Gautier sells the mill of Bayerel with the water rights, together with the tithe of Saules, to Hugues Clerc for 500 gold écus.

1622. Hugues and Abraham Clerc lease out the mill; four wheels driven by the millrace power two grain millstones, a plank saw and a device for crushing fruit and seeds.

1642. On 25 February, the carpenter Abraham Lorimier undertakes to rebuild the roof frame of the mills; the building is rebuilt in its present form.

1742. On 6 June, a fire destroys a house, two mills, a sawmill and a stamping mill; the loss is estimated at 2'000 pounds. The mill is then repaired.

1784. Another fire in April, when the site belongs to Jonas-Pierre Vuillemier.

1821. The site is sold to Samuel Ruchti, of Goldiwil (bailiwick of Thun), for 8'400 pounds; the deed describes a house, a mill and an adjoining sawmill.

Mid-19th century. A farm is added to the mill and the sawmill.

2002-2004. The mill is the subject of historical and building-archaeology research by the Office of Heritage and Archaeology, resumed in 2020.

2013. Fenin-Vilars-Saules and Engollon merge into the new municipality of Val-de-Ruz.

Historic sites in Bayerel

The mill of Bayerel. Listed as an A object (national importance) in the cantonal inventory of cultural property, the mill is a rare witness to milling and timber sawing. The Moulin de Bayerel association bought and renovated the building, restored the millrace and put the sawmill's overshot wheel back into operation.

The millrace. Channel that draws its water from the Seyon and has fed the wheels of the mill and sawmill since the 15th century.

Sources

• Moulin de Bayerel, « Historique »
• Moulin de Bayerel, page d'accueil
• Office fédéral de la protection de la population, « Révision Inventaire PBC 2021 : liste cantonale, canton de NE » (état au 1.1.2026)
• État de Neuchâtel, Office du patrimoine et de l'archéologie, « Principales recherches historiques, architecturales et d'archéologie du bâti menées depuis 2000 »
• Parc régional Chasseral, « Le Moulin de Bayerel »
• Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Fenin-Vilars-Saules » (Dominique Quadroni)
• Commune de Val-de-Ruz, « À voir ou visiter »
• geo.admin.ch, service de recherche de lieux (swisstopo)
• État de Neuchâtel, arrêté du 4 février 2026 homologuant le recensement cantonal de la population au 31 décembre 2025

Other villages near Bayerel

• Saules (NE)
• Engollon (NE)
• Vilars (NE)
• Fenin (NE)
• Savagnier (NE)