St Margaret's Bay Windmill Explained

St Margaret's Bay Windmill
Location Of Mill:St Margaret's at Cliffe, Kent
Gbgridref:TR 363 436
Coordinates:51.1421°N 1.3764°W
Built:1929
Purpose:Electricity generation
Type:Smock mill
Storeys:Three-storey smock
Base Storeys:Single-storey base
Smock Sides:Eight-sided
Sail Number:Four
Sail Type:Double Patent sails
Windshaft:Cast iron
Winding:Fantail
Fantail Blades:Six blades
Other:Last new build traditional windmill in Kent.

St Margaret's Bay Windmill is a Grade II listed smock mill on South Foreland, the southeasternmost point of England. It was built in 1929 to generate electricity for the attached house, high on the White Cliffs of Dover.

History

The mill was built for Sir William Bearswell by Holman's, the Canterbury millwrights. It was built to generate electricity and started generating in June 1929.[1] The mill ceased to generate electricity in 1939, when the dynamo was removed. During the Second World War, the mill was occupied by a special branch of the WRNS.[2] Repairs were done to the mill in 1969 by millwrights Vincent Pargeter and Philip Lennard. These included a new fantail and repairs to the sails.[3]

Description

St Margaret's Bay Windmill is a three-storey smock mill on a single-storey brick base. It has four patent sails and is winded by a fantail.[1] The mill generated electricity via a dynamo and is now used as residential accommodation, a use it has always had.[3]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Coles Finch, William. William Coles Finch . 1933. Watermills and Windmills. 268. C W Daniel Company. London.
  2. Book: Brown, R J. 1976. Windmills of England. 108–09. Robert Hale. London. 0-7091-5641-3.
  3. Book: West, Jenny. 1973. The Windmills of Kent. 67–68. Charles Skilton Ltd.. London. 0-284-98534-1.