Reigate Heath Windmill
Encyclopedia
Reigate Heath Windmill is a grade II* listed post mill
at Reigate Heath
, Surrey
, England
which has been restored and is used as a chapel. It is thought to be the only windmill in the world which is a consecrated church.
, the first service taking place on 14 September 1880. The chapel is known as the St Cross Chapel. The mill was offered for sale in 1891, and in 1900 was bought by Reigate Golf Club, who leased the mill back to the church. In 1926, a sail broke. New sails were fitted in 1927 by a millwright
from Crawley
, and a dummy fantail
fitted to the rear of the mill - a feature the mill never had during it working life! The sails blew off in 1943 and were not replaced, although repairs were made to the mill in 1949. Following letters appearing in the Sunday Mirror
, a survey was made of the mill in 1952, which revealed that although the roundhouse was in a good condition, the mill was not. Recommendations made included the replacement of the weather beam, which had been penetrated by rot to a depth of at least 3 inches (76.2 mm).
In 1962, the mill was purchased by Reigate Borough Council, as the Golf Club were finding maintenance of the mill was becoming too onerous. The mill was restored over the next two years and new sails fitted. A church service was held on 18 October 1964, and since May 1965 a service has been held on the third Sunday of each month during the summer. Further restoration took place in 2002, including new sails and repairs and strengthening of the mill. The mill was awarded third place in the 2003 Green Apple Awards.
The first wedding to be performed at the church was by the Rev. Thompson on September 22, 1984. The newly weds were Diana L. Chiles and Andrew C. Bartlett.
carried on a wooden windshaft, with the stones arranged Head and Tail. It was last worked with four double Patent sails carried on a cast iron
Windshaft, with the two pairs of millstone
s arranged side by side in the breast of the mill, driven underdrift by spur gearing. The wooden Brake Wheel is of clasp arm construction, with 104 cogs. This drove a cast iron Wallower with 33 teeth, carried on a cast iron upright shaft. The Spur Wheel is also of cast iron, with 80 cogs. The Stone Nuts have 23 and 25 teeth respectively.
Post mill
The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. The defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. The earliest post mills in England are thought to have...
at Reigate Heath
Reigate Heath
Reigate Heath is a Site of Special Scientific Interest near Reigate, Surrey, England.-External links:*...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, 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 has been restored and is used as a chapel. It is thought to be the only windmill in the world which is a consecrated church.
History
Reigate Heath Windmill was built c.1765, although a mill was marked on maps dated 1753 and 1762. The mill was last worked by wind in April 1862. In 1880, the roundhouse was converted into a chapel of ease to St Mary's Parish Church, ReigateReigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...
, the first service taking place on 14 September 1880. The chapel is known as the St Cross Chapel. The mill was offered for sale in 1891, and in 1900 was bought by Reigate Golf Club, who leased the mill back to the church. In 1926, a sail broke. New sails were fitted in 1927 by a millwright
Millwright
A millwright is a craftsman or tradesman engaged with the construction and maintenance of machinery.Early millwrights were specialist carpenters who erected machines used in agriculture, food processing and processing lumber and paper...
from Crawley
Crawley
Crawley is a town and local government district with Borough status in West Sussex, England. It is south of Charing Cross, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town of Chichester, covers an area of and had a population of 99,744 at the time of the 2001 Census.The area has...
, and a dummy fantail
Windmill fantail
A Fantail is a small windmill mounted at right angles to the sails, at the rear of the windmill, and which turns the cap automatically to bring it into the wind. The fantail was patented in 1745 by Edmund Lee, a blacksmith working at Brockmill Forge near Wigan, England, and perfected on mills...
fitted to the rear of the mill - a feature the mill never had during it working life! The sails blew off in 1943 and were not replaced, although repairs were made to the mill in 1949. Following letters appearing in the Sunday Mirror
Sunday Mirror
The Sunday Mirror is the Sunday sister paper of the Daily Mirror. It began life in 1915 as the Sunday Pictorial and was renamed the Sunday Mirror in 1963. Trinity Mirror also owns The People...
, a survey was made of the mill in 1952, which revealed that although the roundhouse was in a good condition, the mill was not. Recommendations made included the replacement of the weather beam, which had been penetrated by rot to a depth of at least 3 inches (76.2 mm).
In 1962, the mill was purchased by Reigate Borough Council, as the Golf Club were finding maintenance of the mill was becoming too onerous. The mill was restored over the next two years and new sails fitted. A church service was held on 18 October 1964, and since May 1965 a service has been held on the third Sunday of each month during the summer. Further restoration took place in 2002, including new sails and repairs and strengthening of the mill. The mill was awarded third place in the 2003 Green Apple Awards.
The first wedding to be performed at the church was by the Rev. Thompson on September 22, 1984. The newly weds were Diana L. Chiles and Andrew C. Bartlett.
Description
Reigate Heath Windmill is a post mill with a single storey roundhouse. Winding is by tailpole. It originally had four Common sailsWindmill sail
Windmills are powered by their sails. Sails are found in different designs, from primitive common sails to the advanced patent sails.-Jib sails:...
carried on a wooden windshaft, with the stones arranged Head and Tail. It was last worked with four double Patent sails carried on a cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
Windshaft, with the two pairs of millstone
Millstone
Millstones or mill stones are used in windmills and watermills, including tide mills, for grinding wheat or other grains.The type of stone most suitable for making millstones is a siliceous rock called burrstone , an open-textured, porous but tough, fine-grained sandstone, or a silicified,...
s arranged side by side in the breast of the mill, driven underdrift by spur gearing. The wooden Brake Wheel is of clasp arm construction, with 104 cogs. This drove a cast iron Wallower with 33 teeth, carried on a cast iron upright shaft. The Spur Wheel is also of cast iron, with 80 cogs. The Stone Nuts have 23 and 25 teeth respectively.
Public access
The roundhouse is open for church services one Sunday of each month during the summer, and there are occasional services at other times.External links
- Windmill World webpage on Reigate Heath mill.