Ashby's Mill, often referred to as Brixton Windmill, is a restored

grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

tower mill at

Brixton Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...

in the

London Borough of Lambeth Lambeth () is a London boroughs, London borough in South London, England, which forms part of Inner London. Its name was recorded in 1062 as ''Lambehitha'' ("landing place for lambs") and in 1255 as ''Lambeth''. The geographical centre of London ...

. The mill was in

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

when built and has been preserved.

History

Ashby's Mill was built in 1816 and worked by wind until 1862, when the business was transferred to a

watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of ...

at Mitcham on the

River Wandle The River Wandle is a right-bank tributary of the River Thames in south London, England. With a total length of about , the river passes through the London boroughs of London Borough of Croydon, Croydon, London Borough of Sutton, Sutton, Londo ...

. The sails were removed in 1864 and the windmill was relegated to use as a store. In 1902, the lease on the watermill expired and a

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...

was installed in the windmill. This was later replaced by a

gas engine A gas engine is an internal combustion engine that runs on a gaseous fuel, such as coal gas, producer gas, biogas, landfill gas or natural gas. In the United Kingdom, the term is unambiguous. In the United States, due to the widespread use of ...

. The windmill was worked by engine until 1934, and supplied wholemeal flour to West End hotels and restaurants. After the war, there were proposals to demolish the mill and build a block of flats. The proposal was rejected and it was decided to conserve the mill, which was restored in 1964 by

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

. New sails were fitted, and machinery from a derelict windmill at

Burgh le Marsh Burgh le Marsh is a town, and electoral ward in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England.OS Explorer map: Skegness, Alford & Spilsby: (1:25 000): Geography The town is built on a low hill surrounded by former marsh land, and the mar ...

, Lincolnshire installed to replace that which had been removed. The work being done by Thompson's, the Alford

millwright A millwright is a craftsperson or skilled tradesperson who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites. The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mecha ...

s. Following restoration, the mill was opened to the public at Easter 1968. The mill passed to Lambeth Council in 1971 and remains in their ownership. Further restoration was carried out in 1978 and 1983, but the windmill had been placed on the Buildings at Risk Register in 1995. The Friends of Windmill Gardens had been formed in April 2003 with the aim of restoring the windmill and surrounding area as a public amenity. In September 2004, an archaeological dig was organised, with assistance from the

Museum of London The Museum of London is a museum in London, covering the history of the UK's capital city from prehistoric to modern times. It was formed in 1976 by amalgamating collections previously held by the City Corporation at the Guildhall, London, Gui ...

Archaeology Service. A £25,000 grant was given by Lambeth Borough Council towards repairs to the mill and gardens. A £2,000,000 restoration plan has been put together with assistance from the Horniman Museum and the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. An application for a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund was submitted. The Heritage Lottery Fund granted £397,700 towards the restoration. Lambeth Council and the Friends of Windmill Gardens also contributed towards the restoration of the mill, which cost £581,000. The restored mill was officially opened to the public on 2 May 2011 by

Chuka Umunna Chuka Harrison Umunna (; born 17 October 1978) is a British retired politician who served as Member of Parliament (UK), Member of Parliament (MP) for Streatham (UK Parliament constituency), Streatham from 2010 United Kingdom general election, ...

, MP for

Streatham Streatham ( ) is a district in south London, England. Centred south of Charing Cross, it lies mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, with some parts extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. Streatham was in Surrey ...

Description

''Ashby's Mill'' is a four-storey brick tower mill with a boat shaped cap. It had two

Patent sails Windmills are powered by their sails. Sails are found in different designs, from primitive common sails to the advanced patent sails. Jib sails The jib sail is found in Mediterranean countries and consists of a simple triangle of cloth wound rou ...

and two Common sails. The cap was winded by a hand wheel, no

fantail Fantails are small insectivorous songbirds of the genus ''Rhipidura'' in the family Rhipiduridae, native to Australasia, Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Most of the species are about long, specialist aerial feeders, and named as "f ...

being fitted. The cast iron windshaft is the only remaining original piece of machinery. The mill is diameter at the base and to the curb, and high overall.

Millers

*John Ashby 1816 - 1845 *Joshua Ashby 1860s - 1934

References

External links

Brixton Windmill
- official site of Ashby's Mill
SPAB
- SPAB Mills section

webpage on Ashby's mill. {{Authority control 1816 establishments in England Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Lambeth History of the London Borough of Lambeth Grinding mills in the United Kingdom Tower mills in the United Kingdom Windmills completed in 1816 Windmills in London Towers completed in 1816