Wheatley Windmill is an 18th-century
tower mill
A tower mill is a type of vertical windmill consisting of a brick or stone tower, on which sits a wooden 'cap' or roof, which can rotate to bring the sails into the wind.Medieval science, technology, and medicine: an encyclopedia (2005), 520
Thi ...
at between the hamlet of
Littleworth and
Wheatley Wheatley may refer to:
Places
* Wheatley (crater), on Venus
* Wheatley, Ontario, Canada
* Wheatley, Hampshire, England
* Wheatley, Oxfordshire, England
** Wheatley railway station
* Wheatley, South Yorkshire, England
* Wheatley, now Ben Rhydding, ...
in
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The
windmill
A windmill is a structure that converts wind power into rotational energy using vanes called windmill sail, sails or blades, specifically to mill (grinding), mill grain (gristmills), but the term is also extended to windpumps, wind turbines, and ...
has an octagonal plan which narrows to form the circular rotating cap.
History
The first written evidence concerning the mill is dated 1671, describing it as being "in a ruinous condition" even then. In 1760, there was significant fire and wind damage. New machinery was installed in 1784, supplied by the
Eagle Ironworks in
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. After 1914, the mill fell into disuse and disrepair. However, the Wheatley Windmill Restoration Society has been restoring the windmill since 1977
Wheatley Windmill Restoration Timeline
Wheatley Windmill, UK. and it is currently open to the public.
The Mill Building
The octagonal shape of this 18th-century tower mill is distinctly unusual; there are only two or three such towers in the UK. The tower has three storeys. There are two fireplaces on the ground floor (some mills only had one, and others none at all) and a properly framed staircase leads to the 'stone floor', i.e. the first floor, where the mill stones are set. The original curved dome cap was copper clad and has been described as being 'picturesque without being elegant'.
There were originally four sails (which turned clockwise rather than the more usual anti-clock) but for a time the windmill operated on two sails only. These were of the 'common' type with a wooden frame rigged with canvas which could be set according to the state of the wind and the amount of work the miller had to do. The canvas used was similar to that used on Thames barges.
See also
* List of windmills in Oxfordshire
This is a list of windmills in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Oxfordshire, England.
Locations
Maps
*1675 Ogilby
*1675* Plott
*1676 Ogilby
*1715 Overton
*1766 Jeffrey
*1794 Richard Davis
*1820 Townsend
*1823 Bryant
N ...
References
External links
Wheatley Windmill - Official Website
Oxford Preservation Trust Award for Building Conservation 2010
Windmills in Oxfordshire
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