The Blennerville Windmill is a 21.30 m high, stone, reefing stage, windmill in Blennerville, Co.

Kerry Kerry or Kerri may refer to: * Kerry (name), a given name and surname of Gaelic origin (including a list of people with the name) Places * Kerry, Queensland, Australia * County Kerry, Ireland ** Kerry Airport, an international airport in Count ...

, Ireland. The mill has five floors, ground floor, intermediate floor, grinding floor, stone floor and cap floor.

History

The mill was built in 1800 by order of Sir Rowland Blennerhassett and has two grinding couples with on the spindle a gear that is driven by the wheel with wooden combs. The

grinding stones Grind is the cross-sectional shape of a blade. Grind, grinds, or grinding may also refer to: Grinding action * Grinding (abrasive cutting), a method of crafting * Grinding (dance), suggestive club dancing * Grinding (video gaming), repetitive a ...

are French bir. The mill was used for milling grain, both for local people and for export to Great Britain. At the end of the 19th century, the mill began to decay due to the rise of the steam engine, the salinisation of the river channel to Blennerville, the opening of the Tralee Ship Canal in 1846 and the construction of the

Fenit Fenit () is a small village in County Kerry, Ireland, located on north side of Tralee Bay about west of Tralee town, just south of the Shannon Estuary. The bay is enclosed from the Atlantic by the Maharee spit which extends northwards from ...

harbour in 1880. In 1981 the town of

Tralee Tralee ( ; ga, Trá Lí, ; formerly , meaning 'strand of the Lee River') is the county town of County Kerry in the south-west of Ireland. The town is on the northern side of the neck of the Dingle Peninsula, and is the largest town in Count ...

in the

Urban District Council In England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and the Republic of Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected urban district council (UDC), which shared local gove ...

buy the mill and began the restoration of the mill in June 1984. The restored mill was officially opened in 1990 by Taoiseach (Prime Minister)

Charles Haughey Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...

. Nowadays again wheat is ground.

Specifications

The wooden windshaft has a one-ton stock housing cast. The mill has

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

of 18.29 meters (60 feet) with wooden breast rods. The brake wheel and the crown wheel have conical toothing with iron teeth. The winding mechanism is operated outside the mill with a jug chain over a sprocket. The small transmission makes the crossing very slow, 180 degrees of cross takes about two hours. The sack hoist has a conical wheel, which is driven under the crown wheel. On the now empty intermediate floor is tentering of the main shaft of douglas fir with an iron construction, which used to have a motor. Also here are the tentering of the grinding couples and the great spur wheel. There is also a visitor centre with a craft centre, model railways, art gallery, audio-visual presentation and restaurant. Guided tours with a guide are given in the mill. The Blennerville Windmill is now the only commercial windmill in Ireland.

Gallery

Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, kruiwerk, kruiketting.JPG, Winding mechanism Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, kruiwerk, tandwiel.jpg, Winding pully Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, kruiwerk (02).jpg, Winding mechanism Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, kap bovenwiel, bovenas (01)a.jpg, Windshaft and cog wheel Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, kap bovenwiel, bonkelaar (01).jpg, Cog wheels Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, maalkoppel, kaar.jpg, Grinding equipment Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, taats, bolspl (02).jpg, Footstep bearing and stone nut at spindle Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, luiwerk luitafel.jpg, Wooden pulley Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland taats.JPG, Footstep bearing main shaft Molen Blennerville windmill, Ireland, werktuig (01).JPG, Standard for former motor and a tip of the great spurwheel

External links

Blennerville Windmill & Visitor Centre
{{Irish Windmills Windmills completed in 1800 Buildings and structures in Tralee Mill museums in the Republic of Ireland Museums in County Kerry Tower mills Tourist attractions in County Kerry Windmills in the Republic of Ireland