Tower Mill

The tower mill originated in written history in the late 13th century in Western Europe; the earliest record of its existence is from 1295, from Stephen de Pencastor of Dover, but the earliest illustrations date from 1390. Other early examples come from Yorkshire and Buckinghamshire. Other sources pin its earliest inception back in 1180 in the form of an illustration on a Norman deed, showing this new western-style windmill. The Netherlands has six mills recorded before the year 1407. One of the earliest tower mills in Britain was Chesterton Windmill, Warwickshire, which has a hollowed conical base with arches. The large part of its development continued through the Late Middle Ages.…

]] The advantage of the tower mill over the earlier post mill is that it is not necessary to turn the whole mill ("body", "buck") with all its machinery into the wind; this allows more space for the machinery as well as for storage. However, select tower mills found around Holland were constructed on a wooden frame so as to rotate the entire foundation of the mill along with the cap. These towers were often constructed out of wood rather than masonry as well. A movable head which could pivot to react to the changing wind patterns was the most important aspect of the tower mill. This ability gave the advantage of a larger and more stable frame that could deal with harsh weather. Also, only…