Barnet Gate Mill or Arkley Windmill is a
grade II* listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...
tower mill
A tower mill is a type of vertical windmill consisting of a brick or stone tower, on which sits a wooden 'cap' or roof, which can rotate to bring the sails into the wind.Medieval science, technology, and medicine: an encyclopedia (2005), 520
T ...
at
Barnet Gate
Barnet Gate is a hamlet on the northern edge of the London Borough of Barnet to the west of Arkley, in England. There was a settlement there during the Roman occupation of Britain and in the Anglo-Saxon period it was known as ''Grendeles Gatan'' ...
in the
London Borough of Barnet
The London Borough of Barnet () is a suburban London borough in North London. The borough was formed in 1965 from parts of the ceremonial counties of Middlesex and Hertfordshire. It forms part of Outer London and is the largest London boroug ...
, originally in
Hertfordshire.
There is no public access.
History
Barnet Gate Mill was probably built between 1822 and 1840.
[ A claim that it was built during the ]Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
(c.1800) has not been substantiated. Although steam
Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizat ...
had been added in 1895, it was working by wind until 1916.[ The mill was restored in 1930.] A new cap, 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 ...
and gallery around the cap being made. The work was done by Thomas Hunt, the Soham
Soham ( ) is a town and civil parish in the district of East Cambridgeshire, in Cambridgeshire, England, just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket. Its population was 10,860 at the 2011 census.
History Archaeology
The region between Dev ...
millwright
A millwright is a craftsperson or skilled tradesperson who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites.
The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mecha ...
. In a further restoration in 1985, the missing pair of sails was replaced.[
]
Description
Barnet Gate Mill is a four-storey tower mill with an ogee cap which has a gallery. It has two Patent sails
Windmills are powered by their sails. Sails are found in different designs, from primitive common sails to the advanced patent sails.
Jib sails
The jib sail is found in Mediterranean countries and consists of a simple triangle of cloth wound ro ...
and two Common 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 impu ...
windshaft. The cap is winded by a fantail.[
]
Machinery
The mill may have started life with two Common sails and two Spring sails carried on a wooden windshaft as the wooden clasp arm Brake Wheel has had to be fitted with packing pieces to enable it to fit the current windshaft, which being of iron is a smaller diameter than a wooden one would be. The Wallower is of cast iron, carried on a wooden upright shaft. This carries the Great Spur Wheel, which is of iron with wooden cogs and drove the two pairs of millstones underdrift. A third pair was added when steam power was installed. Only one pair of millstones remains today.[
]
Millers
*John Whitehead 1843–1851
*Frederick Edwards 1870–1899
*Noah Edwards 1896–1918[
]
References
External links
Windmill World
webpage on Barnet Gate mill
{{Windmills in England
Tower mills in the United Kingdom
Grinding mills in the United Kingdom
Windmills completed in 1823
Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Barnet
Windmills in London
Tourist attractions in the London Borough of Barnet
Arkley
Towers completed in 1823