Eastbridge Windpump facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Eastbridge Windpump |
|
|---|---|
Eastbridge Windpump as restored at the Museum of East Anglian Life
|
|
| Origin | |
| Mill name | Eastbridge Windpump |
| Mill location | TM 045 580 |
| Coordinates | 52°10′56″N 0°59′32″E / 52.18222°N 0.99222°E |
| Operator(s) | Museum of East Anglian Life |
| Year built | 1979 |
| Information | |
| Purpose | drainage mill |
| Type | Smock mill |
| Smock sides | Eight sides |
| No. of sails | Four Sails |
| Type of sails | Patent sails |
| Windshaft | Cast iron |
| Winding | Fantail |
| Fantail blades | Six blades |
| Type of pump | Three-throw plunger pump |
Eastbridge Windpump is a special type of smock mill. It used to be a pumping station that moved water. Today, you can find it at the Museum of East Anglian Life in Stowmarket, Suffolk, England. It has been carefully rebuilt and works again!
Contents
The Story of Eastbridge Windpump
How it Was Built
The Eastbridge Windpump was likely built in the mid-1800s. A skilled builder named Robert Martin from Beccles probably constructed it. Its main job was to help drain the Minsmere Levels near Eastbridge, Leiston. This kept the land from flooding.
Its Working Life
In the early 1920s, another mill expert, Dan England, made the windpump stronger. He used parts from a collapsed smock mill nearby. The Eastbridge Windpump worked using wind power until 1940. After World War II, a new iron windpump took over its job.
From Collapse to Restoration
Sadly, on February 19, 1977, the Eastbridge Windpump fell down. Members of the Suffolk Mills Group carefully took apart its remains in July 1977. These parts were then used to rebuild the mill at the Museum of East Anglian Life in Stowmarket. Jameson Marshall Ltd. did the restoration work.
How the Windpump Works
Key Parts of the Mill
The Eastbridge Windpump is about 30 feet (9 meters) tall. It sits on a brick base. The top part, called the cap, looks like a boat. A fantail helps the cap turn to face the wind.
Four large Patent sails are attached to a strong cast-iron pole called the windshaft. These sails are about 44 feet (13 meters) wide. Inside, a brake wheel turns another wheel called a wallower. These are also made of cast iron.
The wallower spins an upright shaft. This shaft connects to a crown wheel, which then powers a special pump. This pump is a "three-throw plunger pump." It has three cylinders, each about 1 foot (300 mm) square, that push water.
Visiting Eastbridge Windpump
You can visit the Eastbridge Windpump at the Museum of East Anglian Life. You can see it from the outside during the museum's normal opening hours.
