Beacon Mill, Rottingdean

Rottingdean Windmill
The mill in 2010
Origin
Mill name	Beacon Mill New Mill
Mill location	TQ 366 025 50°48′22″N 0°03′47″W / 50.806°N 0.063°W / 50.806; -0.063
Operator(s)	Rottingdean Preservation Society
Year built	1802
Information
Purpose	Corn mill
Type	Smock mill
Storeys	Three storey smock
Base storeys	Single storey base
Smock sides	Eight sides
Number of sails	Four sails
Type of sails	Patent sails
Windshaft	Cast iron
Winding	Fantail

The great spur wheel on the ground floor of the Rottingdean windmill. The millstones on the floor above are driven from here.

This large wooden gearwheel is mounted atop the Upright shaft and receives drive from the brake wheel which is driven by the windshaft and sails. Sadly, it was cut in half during the fitting of a steel skeleton to assist in supporting the mill.

Beacon Mill or New Mill is a grade II listed^[1] smock mill at Rottingdean, Sussex, England which has been restored as a seamark.

History

Beacon Mill, was built in 1802. There are records of an earlier mill on the site, thought to have been a post mill.^[2] During the digging of the foundations, a human skeleton was found.^[3] The mill was working until 1881^[2] and by 1890 was in such bad condition that demolition was considered. In 1905, the Marquis of Abergavenny had the mill repaired, but she was derelict again by the early 1920s. It was 1935 before she was restored again, the millwrighting being done by Neve's of Heathfield and new sails were made by Holman's, the Canterbury millwrights. In 1969, the mill was leaning to the north east, and Hole's, the Burgess Hill millwrights erected a steel frame inside the smock to support the mill, and fitted new sails.^[3] The steel framing was extended into the cap in 1974^[2]

Description

For an explanation of the various pieces of machinery, see Mill machinery.

Beacon Mill is a three storey smock mill on a single storey brick base. It has a Kentish style cap, and four Patent sails. It originally had a fantail, but this is now missing.^[3]

Millers

• Thomas Beard 1802 -
• George Nicholls 1877 - 1881

References for above:-^[3]

Culture and Media

Beacon Mill featured on the front cover of the album "Vale Industrial" by Brighton band "The Tenderfoot".^[4]

The mill also featured in the music video for That Old Pair of Jeans by Fatboy Slim.^{[citation needed]}

Public access

Beacon Mill is open to the public from 14:00 to 16:30 on both days of National Mills Weekend, and on the third Sunday of each month from May to September.^[5]

See also

• Grade II listed buildings in Brighton and Hove: A–B
• Wikipedia books: Windmills in Sussex

References

1. ^ "ROTTINGDEAN WINDMILL AT NGR 365 024, NEVILL ROAD (north off), BRIGHTON, BRIGHTON AND HOVE, EAST SUSSEX". English Heritage. http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?pid=2&id=479579. Retrieved May 11, 2008. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} The Story of the Rottingdean Windmill. Rottingdean: The Rottingdean Preservation Society. 1977. pp. (leaflet). 
3. ^ ^{a b c d} Brunnarius, Martin (1979). The Windmills of Sussex. Chichester: Philimore. pp. p63–64, 190. ISBN 0-85033-345-8. 
4. ^ "Rottingdean windmill on album cover". Windmill World. http://www.windmillworld.com/news/archive18.htm#435. Retrieved May 11, 2008. 
5. ^ "Rottingdean Windmill". Sussex Mills Group. http://www.sussexmillsgroup.org.uk/open1.htm#Rottingdean. Retrieved 19 April 2009. 

External links

• Windmill World Page on Beacon windmill.
• Rottingdean smock mill, photo gallery

Further reading

Hemming, Peter (1936). Windmills in Sussex. London: C W Daniel.  Online version