October2009

50p Where sold

Friends of Windmill www.upminsterwindmill.co.uk Registered Charity Number 1097976

Chairman Dennis Coombs, 1 Highview Gardens, Upminster RM14 2YU 01708 221298 [email protected] Secretary John Winn, 58 St Mary's Lane, Upminster RM14 2QP 01708 509973 [email protected] Treasurer Jean Webb, 2 Fairkytes Avenue, . RMll lXS

file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/October%202009.html[07/01/2017 15:53:04] October2009

01708 437230 [email protected] Vice-Chairman Martin Withers, 40 Chelmer Road, Upminster. RM14 1 QT 01708 229564 Membership Secretary Neil Morley, 121 Lane, Upminster RM14 2NL 01708 505865 [email protected] Editor John Winn, 58 St Mary's Lane, Upminster RM14 2QP 01708 509973 [email protected] Upminster Windmill Preservation Trust Chairman

Vice Chairman Richard Moorey, 10 River Drive, Upminster. RM14 1AS 01708 225845 [email protected] Secretary Frank Morley, 42 Gaynes Park Road, Upminster. RM14 2HP 01708 703740 [email protected]

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file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/October%202009.html[07/01/2017 15:53:04] Commemorating the work of Roger Fuller Saturday 24th October dawned somewhat damp and grey but that did not dampen the warmth of the gathering at Upminster Windmill. A group of about thirty-six - family, friends and work colleagues came together to give thanks for and remember the work of Roger Fuller who was Chairman of the Friends of Upminster Windmill from 2007- 2008. The Mayor, Councillor Roger Ramsay, and his wife, were able to join us for this event and were welcomed to the mill by our present chairman, Dennis Coombs. Bob Sharp, the founder of the Friends of Upminster Windmill, came up from Lymington to join us and spoke of Roger’s commitment and enthusiasm for Upminster Windmill and the important part it played in his life particularly after his retirement.

Four of Roger’s work colleagues from London Transport were with us, to see the plaque, which they had commissioned in memory of their friend and workmate, unveiled by the Mayor. The Mayor spoke of the significance of the Windmill as an important landmark and a building of historical importance. Roger’s son Neil gave a vote of thanks to his Dad’s colleagues and paid tribute to his father. He has assured us that he and his family will be visiting the mill when it re-opens in the spring. Ann too holds the mill and its ‘Friends’ dear to her heart and will continue to offer her support where possible. Following the speeches we were treated to a tasty buffet, which was enjoyed by all, and in true party style many guests were able to go home with a ‘goody’ bag. Our thanks to all who helped in any way to make this a special and

file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/page2.html[07/01/2017 15:53:24] Mill Green Mill, Welwyn Garden City, Hatfield We spent a few days earlier in the year in our Caravan at the Caravan Club site just outside Welwyn Garden City. As we drove towards the site I noticed a sign pointing to this watermill and of course I had to visit it. [The text below I have edited from their web site. The pictures, except the lower one on this page, are mine. JW]

There has probably been a mill on this site since Saxon times, for the Doomsday survey of 1086 records that the manor of "Hetfelle", held by the Abbot of Ely, included four mills. With the dissolution of the monasteries during the reign of Henry VIII the manor of Hatfield, and thus Mill Green Watermill, came under the control of the crown. The crown maintained control until The Cecil Family took over the Hatfield estate in the early part of the 17th Century. Mill Green Watermill remained a part of The Cecil Family estate until its purchase by Hatfield Rural District Council in the 1950’s.

Down through the centuries the mill has seen many alterations and file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/page3.html[07/01/2017 15:53:49] repairs. The date and initials "17 IB 62", which are still visible on a front wall brick, suggests a major rebuild was undertaken during the latter part of the 18th Century. This was probably connected with the need to increase milling capacity as the medieval system - "soke" - fell into disuse. The initials "IB" are most likely those of Joseph Biggs, a prominent entrepreneur in the area at that time. A signature dating from 1824, visible on the first floor Hurst frame, may indicate further structural work. How the mill fell into disuse Modernisation of the milling industry meant that by the early 1900s the local grocer was able to supply flour much cheaper than the local mill, and so traditional milling, and, inevitably, millers themselves, began to disappear. In 1911 the miller at Mill Green, one Sydney Christmas Lawrence, dropped the sluice gate and closed the front door for the very last time. After his emigration to Australia both the building and machinery were left to fall into disrepair. Restoration Plans to restore the mill were first formulated in the early 1970s. The Mill Green Watermill Restoration Trust, set up in 1979, pooled the resources of a large number of interested groups and individuals. A new staircase and first floor were installed, and the pit wheel and Hurst frame were both repaired. The work was concluded in 1986 with the replacement of the waterwheel and millstones.

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file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/page3.html[07/01/2017 15:53:49] file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/page4.html[07/01/2017 15:54:09] Millstone Furniture The millstones are enclosed in a wooden "tun" to prevent any of the newly ground flour from spilling out onto the floor. The opening on top of the tun is spanned by a wooden frame known as "the horse". The horse, in turn, supports the tapered "hopper". Grain travels down through the hopper and into an inclined spout called the shoe. The angle of the shoe controls the amount of grain flowing into the millstones. This angle is adjusted by means of a crook string, which links the shoe to a twist peg that can be operated by the miller on the ground floor, also known as the meal floor. The metal, whisk-like object is named "the damsel". The damsel rotates with the runner stone and shakes the shoe from side to side, helping the grain along. This action creates a constant chattering noise - which may go some way to explaining how this particular object got its rather unusual name.

file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/page4.html[07/01/2017 15:54:09] The shoe is held in tension by means of a string attached to a wooden spring called "the miller’s willow", or "the miller’s wand". It is important that the miller knows when more grain needs to be fed into the hopper, so the grain in the hopper sits on top of a leather belt. Attached to this belt is a length of string with a bell on the end, and this bell hangs above the "crown wheel". When the weight of grain is insufficient to hold the belt down, and the bell up, gravity takes over forcing the bell to drop onto the crown wheel, and begin ringing.

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file:///H|/Items%20to%20add%20to%20archive/Old%20Newsletters/October2009/page4.html[07/01/2017 15:54:09] The Sack Hoist The sack hoist is used to lift sacks of grain from the ground floor, (meal floor), to the loft, (bin floor). Here the grain is stored before being placed into large wooden bins for milling. The sacks are pulled up by a chain, which is lowered from the bin floor through a series of trapdoors. The chain is then looped around the top of the sack and rewound onto a rotating drum. This drum is powered by a belt, which is driven by the gear known as the crown wheel. The bottom of this belt can be seen if you look directly above the millstones on the first floor. The trapdoors below have leather hinges to ensure that they fall shut again once a sack has passed through. The sack hoist has also been the saviour of many a miller’s weary back! The Mill is owned and operated by Hatfield Council. I was shown round the Mill by Mike King, the Senior Miller and Millwright. He knew Upminster Mill having worked on the fantail in the 1970s.

Dulux Decorator Centre, 1-6 Denbar Parade, Eastern Avenue West, RM7 8AA 01708 729110. Suppliers of paint used on the weatherboarding and inside the Windmill.

The next Newsletter will be published in January. Any mill related items are very welcome for inclusion. Please can you send them to the editor by 5th January please.

Produced and Printed by John Winn, 58 St Mary’s Lane, Upminster RM14 2QP

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