Willesborough Windmill
Encyclopedia
New Mill is a Grade II* listed smock mill
in Hythe Road, Willesborough
, Ashford, Kent
. It stands just west of junction 10 of the M20 motorway
. It was built in 1869 and is now a museum open to the public.
millwright
, replacing an earlier smock mill. The mill was worked by the Cornes family until the First World War, and by the Manwaring family from 1920 until 1938 when the mill last worked by wind. The mill was then sold to T Denne and Sons and used for storage. The fantail
was sold to Barham mill
in 1946 and installed on that mill. In 1969 the mill was bought by Tom Robbins and remained in his ownership until it was bought, in a very dilapidated state, and fully restored in 1991 to its former glory by Ashford Borough Council
for the benefit of the citizens of Ashford and the public at large.
The mill makes its own stoneground wholemeal
bread
flour, turning one set of stones with the power of a 14 hp Hornsby
engine. The mill, with its neighbouring barn
, is licenced for Wedding
s, Christening
s, (Civil ceremonies
) and many other meetings and functions. The Mill complex is open from April to the end of September on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays from 2pm to 5pm. School and group visits can be arranged for weekdays.
In 2006 the mill was awarded a Heritage Lottery Grant
which enabled the replacement of the sails. The new sails were fitted on 13 April 2007. Part of the grant was spent on producing an Education
pack for use on school
visits. The windmill is now fully operational and able to mill flour using wind or the engine. The mill is licensed to hold wedding ceremonies
.
was a bicycle
, autocycle
, moped
, and motorcycle
manufacturer based in Ashford, and the mill's barn complex houses the Norman Museum, where they have some mopeds and bicycles on display. The Norman Cycles Club is based at the Windmill.
's cottage. It has four patent sails
carried on a cast iron
windshaft. It drives four pairs of millstone
s by wind with a fifth pair powered by an auxiliary engine. This was a steam engine until 1911, then an oil engine and latterly an electric motor. The Brake Wheel is of composite construction, with an iron centre and wooden rim. This drives a cast iron Wallower on the Upright Shaft, which carries a cast iron Great Spur Wheel which drives the millstones overdrift.
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...
in Hythe Road, Willesborough
Willesborough
Willesborough is a residential suburb on the eastern side of Ashford, Kent, England.-The area:The South Willesborough Dykes area, on the west bank of the East Stour river, is an area of sheep fields drained by dykes. The area is designated as the South Willesborough Dykes Site of Nature...
, Ashford, Kent
Ashford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
. It stands just west of junction 10 of the M20 motorway
M20 motorway
The M20 is a motorway in Kent, England. It runs from the M25 motorway to Folkestone, providing a link to the Channel Tunnel and the ports at Dover. It is long...
. It was built in 1869 and is now a museum open to the public.
History
New Mill was built in 1869 by John Hill, the AshfordAshford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
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...
, replacing an earlier smock mill. The mill was worked by the Cornes family until the First World War, and by the Manwaring family from 1920 until 1938 when the mill last worked by wind. The mill was then sold to T Denne and Sons and used for storage. The 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...
was sold to Barham mill
Black Mill, Barham
Black Mill or Barham Downs Mill was a smock mill at Barham, Kent, England which was accidentally burnt down in 1970 whilst under restoration.-History:thumb|left|The machinery displayed on the village green....
in 1946 and installed on that mill. In 1969 the mill was bought by Tom Robbins and remained in his ownership until it was bought, in a very dilapidated state, and fully restored in 1991 to its former glory by Ashford Borough Council
Ashford (borough)
Ashford is a local government district and borough in Kent, England. Its council is based in the town of Ashford.The borough was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger of the borough of Tenterden with Ashford urban district, and the East Ashford, West Ashford and Tenterden Rural Districts...
for the benefit of the citizens of Ashford and the public at large.
The mill makes its own stoneground wholemeal
Whole grain
Whole grains are cereal grains that contain cereal germ, endosperm, and bran, in contrast to refined grains, which retain only the endosperm. Whole grains can generally be sprouted while refined grains generally will not sprout. Whole-meal products are made by grinding whole grains in order to make...
bread
Bread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
flour, turning one set of stones with the power of a 14 hp Hornsby
Richard Hornsby & Sons
Richard Hornsby & Sons was an engine and machinery manufacturer in Lincolnshire, England from 1828 until 1918. The company was a pioneer in the manufacture of the oil engine developed by Herbert Akroyd Stuart and marketed under the Hornsby-Akroyd name. The company developed an early track system...
engine. The mill, with its neighbouring barn
Barn
A barn is an agricultural building used for storage and as a covered workplace. It may sometimes be used to house livestock or to store farming vehicles and equipment...
, is licenced for Wedding
Wedding
A wedding is the ceremony in which two people are united in marriage or a similar institution. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes...
s, Christening
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
s, (Civil ceremonies
Civil ceremony
A civil registrar ceremony is a non-religious legal marriage ceremony performed by a government official or functionary. In the UK, this person is normally called a registrar...
) and many other meetings and functions. The Mill complex is open from April to the end of September on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays from 2pm to 5pm. School and group visits can be arranged for weekdays.
In 2006 the mill was awarded a Heritage Lottery Grant
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
which enabled the replacement of the sails. The new sails were fitted on 13 April 2007. Part of the grant was spent on producing an Education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
pack for use on school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
visits. The windmill is now fully operational and able to mill flour using wind or the engine. The mill is licensed to hold wedding ceremonies
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
.
Norman Museum
Norman CyclesNorman Cycles
Norman Cycles was a British bicycle, autocycle, moped, and motorcycle manufacturer based in Ashford, Kent, England.The company and its products are remembered today by the Norman Cycles Club which is based at Willesborough Windmill, in Willesborough, Ashford...
was a bicycle
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
, autocycle
Motorized bicycle
A motorized bicycle, motorbike, cyclemotor, or vélomoteur is a bicycle with an attached motor and transmission used either to power the vehicle unassisted, or to assist with pedaling. Since it always retains both pedals and a discrete connected drive for rider-powered propulsion, the motorized...
, moped
Moped
Mopeds are a type of low-powered motorcycle designed to provide economical and relatively safe transport with minimal licensing requirements.Mopeds were once all equipped with bicycle-like pedals , but moped has been increasingly applied by governments to vehicles without pedals, based on their...
, and motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
manufacturer based in Ashford, and the mill's barn complex houses the Norman Museum, where they have some mopeds and bicycles on display. The Norman Cycles Club is based at the Windmill.
Description
New Mill is a four storey smock mill on a two storey brick base with an attached millerMiller
A miller usually refers to a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a cereal crop to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents in other languages around the world...
's cottage. It has four patent sails
Windmill 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 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. It drives four 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 by wind with a fifth pair powered by an auxiliary engine. This was a steam engine until 1911, then an oil engine and latterly an electric motor. The Brake Wheel is of composite construction, with an iron centre and wooden rim. This drives a cast iron Wallower on the Upright Shaft, which carries a cast iron Great Spur Wheel which drives the millstones overdrift.
Millers
- Cornes & Son 1869 - 1918
- Thomas Sellins 1869 - 1904
- John Cobb 1904 - 1940
- William Manwaring 1920 - 1938
- Cecil Coltham 1931- 1940
- T Denne & Sons 1938 - 1969
- Cecil Coltham 1957 - 1968
References for above:-
External links
- Willesborough Windmill - official site
- Willesborough Windmill - on MyAshford.com
- Kent Attractions - Willesborough Windmill
- Windmill World page on the mill.
- Norman Cycles Club - operates the Norman Museum