Ringle Crouch Green Mill

Ringle Crouch Green Mill
The mill c.1892
Origin
Mill location	Sandhurst, Kent
Grid reference	TQ 805 283
Coordinates	51°1′36″N0°34′17″E / 51.02667°N 0.57139°E / 51.02667; 0.57139
Year built	1844
Information
Purpose	Corn mill
Type	Smock mill
Storeys	Four-storey smock
Base storeys	Two-storey base
Smock sides	Eight-sided
No. of sails	Five
Type of sails	Patent sails
Windshaft	Cast iron, with Lincolnshire cross
Winding	Fantail
Fantail blades	Eight blades
No. of pairs of millstones	Four pairs
Year lost	1944
Other information	New smock tower built in 1997, replica mill generates electricity.

Ringle Crouch Green Mill is a smock mill in Sandhurst, Kent, England, that was demolished to base level in 1945, and now has a new smock tower built on it as residential accommodation and an electricity generator.

History

Ringle Crouch Green Mill was built in 1844 by William Warren, the Hawkhurst millwright to replace a post mill which had stood at Boxhurst Farm that was blown down in 1842. It was the only corn mill built in Kent with five sails. ^{[1] [2]} The mill was built for James Collins, who ran the mill until his death. His son Edward then took the mill and ran it until his death in 1911. The mill was run for a short time by Edward Collins' sons Edward and Harry, then by C J Bannister, who also had a mill at Northiam, for about a year until the mill ceased working in 1912. ^[1]

A sail blew off, and the mill quickly became derelict. The fantail and shutters were taken down, and in 1926 the stage was taken down. An iron windpump was erected alongside the mill, and three water tanks were installed in the mill to supply nearby cottages and cowsheds. ^[1] The smock was demolished in 1945 ^[3] The base was left standing and used as a Scout hut for a time. ^[4]

In 1997, planning permission was applied for, and granted, to build a replica mill on the existing mill base, with the tower being used as living accommodation and a wind turbine for generating electricity. The new building was to replicate the former windmill, with five sails like the original mill had. ^[5]

Description

For a description of the machinery, see Mill machinery.

The replica, 2008

Ringle Crouch Green Mill was a four-storey smock mill on a two-storey brick base, with a Kentish-style cap carrying five single patent sails on a cast-iron windshaft. It was winded by a fantail. There was a stage at second-floor level. The mill drove four pairs of millstones. ^[1]

The reconstructed mill has a four-storey smock on the original two-storey mill base, with the cap of a different design to the original, and lacking a fantail. The sails are 12.5 metres (41 ft) long each. ^[5] The generator is rated at about 20 kilowatts (27 hp) capacity. ^[6]

Millers

• James Collins 1844 -
• Edward Collins Sr. - 1911
• Edward & Harry Collins 1911
• C J Bannister 1911 - 1912

References for above:- ^{[1] [7]}

References

1. Coles Finch, William (1933). Watermills and Windmills. London: C W Daniel Company. pp. 269–71.
2. There was another five-sail mill at Margate, but that was a pumping mill
3. "Ringle Crouch Windmill, Sandhurst, Kent". English Heritage. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
4. "History of the Windmill". Heritage Windpower. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
5. "Reconstruction of the Windmill". Heritage Windpower. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
6. "27th July 2005 - Sandhurst Windmill". Roughwood. Retrieved 22 April 2008.
7. "Directory of Kent Mill People". The Mills Archive Trust. Archived from the original on 16 April 2009. Retrieved 22 April 2008.

External links

• Windmill World page on the mill.