Terling Windmill
Encyclopedia
Terling Windmill is a grade II listed Smock mill
at Terling
, Essex
, England
which has been converted to residential use.
from Witham
.
The mill was painted white until 1929 when the smock was tarred. In 1935, the mill was damaged in a gale and lost its fantail
. A new pair of sails from Button's Mill
, Diss
, Norfolk
was fitted in the 1930s. They were brough from Diss by rail and then horse and cart. The mill was working by wind until 1949, and afterwards by external power. On 30 August 1950, the miller was trapped in the machinery and killed, despite the best efforts of the fire brigade to rescue him. Thus the working life of the mill ended. The mill was house converted in 1970, with the major machinery being retained, and its external appearance restored.
and the domed cap was winded by a fantail. When the mill was working, it had a tarred smock with a white cap. After conversion, the mill was painted white, with the cap clad in aluminium sheets.
The smock shows signs of having been dismantled and transported in sections at some point, with the cant posts being newer than the framing. The tower is 35 in 4 in (10.77 m) to the curb, and the domed cap rises 10 in 10 in (3.3 m) above the curb to the underside of the finial, giving the mill an overall height of about 56 feet (17.07 m).
windshaft and four double Patent sails. The last working pair of sails came from Button's Mill, Diss
, Norfolk
, having originally been on the post mill
at Mount Pleasant, Framlingham
, Suffolk
. They had a span of 66 feet (20.12 m) and were 9 feet (2.74 m) wide. The sails now on the mill have a span of 74 feet (22.56 m).
s. The two pairs of French Burr stones being driven by Stone Nuts with 26 cogs, whilst the Peak stones were driven by a Stone Nut with 25 cogs.
References for above:-
.
Smock mill
The smock mill is a type of windmill that consists of a sloping, horizontally weatherboarded tower, usually with six or eight sides. It is topped with a roof or cap that rotates to bring the sails into the wind...
at Terling
Terling
Terling is a village in the county of Essex, England, between the town of Witham and the villages of Great Leighs and Hatfield Peverel. The village was mentioned in the Domesday book...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, 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 converted to residential use.
History
Terling Windmill was built here c1818. It is said to have been originally built at Cressing c1770, but this has neither been proved nor disproved. Originally it was a bark mill, but was advertised for sale in 1818 as “new built” and “may be converted to corn grinding at an inconsiderable expense” The mill may have been built here by Chappell, a millwrightMillwright
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 Witham
Witham
Witham is a town in the county of Essex, in the south east of England with a population of 22,500. It is part of the District of Braintree and is twinned with the town of Waldbröl, Germany. Witham stands between the larger towns of Chelmsford and Colchester...
.
The mill was painted white until 1929 when the smock was tarred. In 1935, the mill was damaged in a gale and lost its 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...
. A new pair of sails from Button's Mill
Button's Mill, Diss
Jay's Mill, Button's Mill or Victoria Road Mill is a tower mill at Diss, Norfolk, England which has been truncated and converted to residential accommodation.-History:...
, Diss
Diss
Diss is a town in Norfolk, England close to the border with the neighbouring East Anglian county of Suffolk.The town lies in the valley of the River Waveney, around a mere that covers . The mere is up to deep, although there is another of mud, making it one of the deepest natural inland lakes...
, 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...
was fitted in the 1930s. They were brough from Diss by rail and then horse and cart. The mill was working by wind until 1949, and afterwards by external power. On 30 August 1950, the miller was trapped in the machinery and killed, despite the best efforts of the fire brigade to rescue him. Thus the working life of the mill ended. The mill was house converted in 1970, with the major machinery being retained, and its external appearance restored.
Description
Terling Windmill is a four storey smock mill on a single storey brick base. A stage was not used. The mill had four double Patent 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:...
and the domed cap was winded by a fantail. When the mill was working, it had a tarred smock with a white cap. After conversion, the mill was painted white, with the cap clad in aluminium sheets.
Mill
Terling Windmill has an octagonal single storey brick base. The walls of which are 28 inches (711 mm) thick at ground level. The base is 21 in 6 in (6.55 m) across the flats and 9 in 6 in (2.9 m) high. The brickwork at the top of the base is about 17 inches (432 mm) thick.The smock shows signs of having been dismantled and transported in sections at some point, with the cant posts being newer than the framing. The tower is 35 in 4 in (10.77 m) to the curb, and the domed cap rises 10 in 10 in (3.3 m) above the curb to the underside of the finial, giving the mill an overall height of about 56 feet (17.07 m).
Sails and windshaft
Terling Windmill has a cast ironCast 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 and four double Patent sails. The last working pair of sails came from Button's Mill, Diss
Button's Mill, Diss
Jay's Mill, Button's Mill or Victoria Road Mill is a tower mill at Diss, Norfolk, England which has been truncated and converted to residential accommodation.-History:...
, 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...
, having originally been on the post mill
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 Mount Pleasant, Framlingham
Framlingham
Framlingham is a market town and civil parish in the Suffolk Coastal District of Suffolk, England. Commonly referred to as "Fram" by the locals, it is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is mentioned in the Domesday Book. It has a population of 3,114 at the 2001 census...
, Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. They had a span of 66 feet (20.12 m) and were 9 feet (2.74 m) wide. The sails now on the mill have a span of 74 feet (22.56 m).
Machinery
The wooden Brake Wheel is of clasp arm construction, 10 in 8 in (3.25 m) diameter, with 96 cogs. This drives an iron Wallower of 5 in 4 in (1.63 m) with 47 cogs. At the lower end of the 25 feet (7.62 m) long wooden Upright Shaft is the clasp arm Great Spur Wheel, which has 108 cogs, and drove three pairs of millstoneMillstone
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. The two pairs of French Burr stones being driven by Stone Nuts with 26 cogs, whilst the Peak stones were driven by a Stone Nut with 25 cogs.
Fantail
Terling Windmill was winded by an eight-bladed fantail, driving an iron worm on the curb.Millers
- Wood 1818
- Frederick Rust 1859
- Charles Joseph Doe 1882 – 1902
- Martin Bonner 1902 – 1912
- Herbert Bonner 1914 – 1950
References for above:-
Culture and media
Terling Windmill featured in the 1937 film Oh, Mr. Porter! starring Will HayWill Hay
William Thomson "Will" Hay was an English comedian, actor, film director and amateur astronomer.-Early life:He was born in Stockton-on-Tees, in north east England, to William R...
.
External links
- Windmill World webpage on Terling windmill