Aslacton Mill is a Grade II listed tower mill

Tower mill

A tower mill is a type of windmill which consists of a brick or stone tower, on top of which sits a roof or cap which can be turned to bring the sails into the wind....

 at Aslacton

Aslacton

Aslacton is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is situated between Norwich and Diss, and is near Great Moulton....

, Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 which is derelict.

History

Aslacton Mill was probably built in 1834, although there was a mill in Aslacton as early as 1751. Benjamin Gibson is the first recorded miller and the mill was owned by Barnabas Burroughes from 1872 until his death on 18 December 1899. The mill passed to his widow and after her death on 4 August 1903, the mill was offered for sale by auction

Auction

An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...

 at the Railway Inn, Tivetshall

Tivetshall St Margaret

Tivetshall St Margaret is a village and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It covers an area of and had a population of 266 in 104 households as of the 2001 census.- The church :...

 on 25 August 1903. The top bid of £350 was below the reserve price, so the mill remained unsold. The mill was sold in October 1903 to Samuel Fickling. He died in March 1913, leaving the mill to his widow. On her death in May 1915 the mill passed to their son Arthur Robinson Fickling, who sold it to Selina Herring in October 1915 for £400. The mill was sold to John Colchester in 1929. The sails were removed c1930 and the mill worked by steam engine. Colchester worked the mill by steam engine, and then an oil engine, until 1938. The derelict tower still stands, containing some machinery.

Description

Aslacton mill is a four storey tower mill which had a boat shaped cap winded by a six bladed fantail. It had four double Patent sails and drove two pairs of millstones. Unusually, these were driven overdrift by wind and underdrift by engine. The tower is about 33 feet (10.06 m) from base to curb level. The upright shaft and great spur wheel for the engine drive remain in situ

In situ

In situ is a Latin phrase which translated literally as 'In position'. It is used in many different contexts.-Aerospace:In the aerospace industry, equipment on board aircraft must be tested in situ, or in place, to confirm everything functions properly as a system. Individually, each piece may...

.

Millers

• Benjamin Gibson 1841-68
• Barnabas Borroughes 1872-98
• Jane Burroughes 1900
• George Leonard Smith 1900-01
• Robert William Drane 1904-08
• William Samuel Herring 1912
• Selina Herring 1915-16
• Charles William Herring 1922-28
• John Corben Colchester 1929-38
  • Samuel McMeakin 1937

Reference for above:-

External links

• Windmill World webpage on Aslacton Mill.