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Wymnondham Windmill is situated about 8 miles from where my parents live. I have been there many times over the years as there has always been a tea room as well as some retail shops on site. Sadly, these have gone downhill in recent years and not really worth the mileage in my opinion – and so the reason I go nowadays is for the beautiful antique shop that’s about a mile away in the nearby village. I still like driving by though and admiring the windmill itself as it is so beautiful.
The windmill was built in 1814 and is an example of a six arm Lincolnshire cross built over five floors (of which there are only 4 left in the whole country). It was used to grind corn until 1952 and then to grind cattle feed until 1960. One of its six sails was damaged in the early 1900s and so subsequently ran with just 4 sails until 1922. This was then replaced by a traction engine which was used until the 1960s.
The original cap (roof) was struck by lightning and so stood open to the elements and unused until the 1970s when eventually a new cap was fitted. The mill fell into disrepair until local entrepreneurs built craft rooms and shop outlets and a children’s play area on the site.
