Reigate Heath Windmill is a grade II* listed

post mill The post mill is the earliest type of European windmill. Its defining feature is that the whole body of the mill that houses the machinery is mounted on a single vertical post, around which it can be turned to bring the sails into the wind. All p ...

at Reigate Heath, Surrey,

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 ...

which has been restored and is used as a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

. It is thought to be the only windmill in the world which is a consecrated church.

History of Reigate Heath Windmill

''Reigate Heath Windmill'' was built c.1765, although a mill was marked on maps dated 1753 and 1762. The mill was last worked by wind in April 1862. In 1880, the roundhouse was converted into a chapel of ease to St Mary's Parish Church,

Reigate Reigate ( ) is a town in Surrey, England, around south of central London. The settlement is recorded in Domesday Book in 1086 as ''Cherchefelle'' and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The earliest archaeological evidence for huma ...

, the first service taking place on 14 September 1880. The chapel is known as the St Cross Chapel. The mill was offered for sale in 1891, and in 1900 was bought by Reigate Golf Club, who leased the mill back to the church. In 1926, a sail broke. New sails were fitted in 1927 by a millwright from Crawley, and a dummy

fantail Fantails are small insectivorous songbirds of the genus ''Rhipidura'' in the family Rhipiduridae, native to Australasia, Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Most of the species are about long, specialist aerial feeders, and named as " ...

fitted to the rear of the mill - a feature the mill never had during its working life! The sails blew off in 1943 and were not replaced, although repairs were made to the mill in 1949. Following letters appearing in the Sunday Mirror, a survey was made of the mill in 1952, which revealed that although the roundhouse was in a good condition, the mill was not. Recommendations made included the replacement of the weather beam, which had been penetrated by rot to a depth of at least . In 1962, the mill was purchased by Reigate Borough Council, as the Golf Club were finding maintenance of the mill was becoming too onerous. The mill was restored over the next two years and new sails fitted. A church service was held on 18 October 1964, and since May 1965 a service has been held on the third Sunday of each month during the summer. Further restoration took place in 2002, including new sails and repairs and strengthening of the mill. The mill was awarded third place in the 2003 Green Apple Awards. The first wedding to be performed at the church was by the Rev. Thompson on 22 September 1984. The newly-weds were Diana L. Chiles and Andrew C. Bartlett.

Description

''Reigate Heath Windmill'' is a post mill with a single-storey roundhouse. Winding is by tailpole. It originally had four common sails carried on a wooden windshaft, with the stones arranged head and tail. It was last worked with four double patent sails carried on a

cast-iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

windshaft, with the two pairs of millstones arranged side by side in the breast of the mill, driven underdrift by spur gearing. The wooden brake wheel is of clasp arm construction, with 104 cogs. This drove a cast-iron wallower with 33 teeth, carried on a cast-iron upright shaft. The spur wheel is also of cast iron, with 80 cogs. The stone nuts have 23 and 25 teeth respectively.

Millers

* Quayle 1862 References for above:-

Public access

The roundhouse is open for church services one Sunday of each month during the summer,The third Sunday according to information on the photograph's geograph page. and there are occasional services at other times.

References

External links

Windmill World
webpage on Reigate Heath mill. {{Reigate and Banstead Industrial buildings completed in 1765 Post mills in the United Kingdom Grinding mills in the United Kingdom Grade II* listed buildings in Surrey Windmills in Surrey Chapels in England Grade II* listed windmills Reigate