White Mill, Sandwich facts for kids

Quick facts for kids White Mill, Sandwich
Origin
Mill name	White Mill
Mill location	Ash Road, Sandwich, Kent
Grid reference	TR 322 586
Operator(s)	The White Mill Museum Trust Ltd
Year built	1760
Information
Purpose	Corn mill
Type	Smock mill
Storeys	Three-storey smock
Base storeys	Single-storey base
Smock sides	Eight-sided
No. of sails	Four
Type of sails	Spring Sails
Windshaft	Cast iron
Winding	Fantail
Fantail blades	Six bladed
Auxiliary power	Engine
No. of pairs of millstones	Two pairs driven by wind, third pair driven by engine

White Mill is a special type of windmill called a smock mill. It is located west of Sandwich, a town in Kent, England. This historic mill was built way back in 1760.

Today, White Mill has been carefully repaired and is open for everyone to visit! It's part of the White Mill Rural Heritage Centre. At the center, you can also see the old miller's house, which looks just like it did between 1900 and 1939. There are also cool displays in other buildings, showing old farming tools, and workshops where people used to make wheels (a wheelwright) and work with metal (a blacksmith).

History of White Mill

White Mill was built in 1760. It appeared on maps from 1769 and 1819. The Stanley family worked the mill for many years.

The mill stopped using wind power in 1926. After that, it was powered by a 28 horsepower (21 kW) oil engine until 1957.

Repairs and Restoration

In the 1960s, a person named Vincent Pargeter helped fix the mill. He later became a professional millwright, which is someone who builds and repairs mills. He used sails from another mill that had been taken down in Wingham.

At first, Mr. Pargeter paid for the repairs himself. But in 1964, the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings gave money to buy materials for the repairs. Sandwich Borough Council bought the mill in 1968. Later, Kent County Council became its owner.

In the early 2010s, a local group of volunteers called the White Mill Rural Heritage Centre started working to make the mill fully working again. In 2018, the top part of the mill (called the cap) was removed for repairs. It was put back in 2023. These repairs cost about £25,000.

How White Mill Works

White Mill is a three-storey smock mill. This means it has a wooden tower that looks like a person wearing a smock (a loose shirt). It sits on a single-storey brick base.

The mill has four spring sails. These sails catch the wind to make the mill turn. A special part called a fantail helps turn the mill's cap so the sails always face the wind.

Inside the Mill

The mill uses the wind to power two pairs of millstones. These stones grind corn into flour. There is also a third pair of millstones that can be powered by an engine.

Many parts of the mill's machinery are made of wood. This includes the large wheels and gears inside, like the brake wheel, wallower, great spur wheel, and stone nuts. The millstones are "overdrift," meaning they are turned from above.

Millers

Here are some of the people who worked as millers at White Mill:

• Thomas Stanley (in 1878)
• Stanley Brothers
• Albert Stanley (until 1952)

Gallery

• 

  The mill in 2008

• 
• 

  Map of Sandwich, 1945, showing the mill.

• 

  Brake wheel and wallower.

• 

  The brake wheel.

• 

  The wallower.

• 

  The stone floor.

• 

  Engine driven stones on the meal floor.

• 

  Great Spur Wheel and engine drive.

• 

  Drive to the engine driven stones.

• 

  Drive from the engine to the mill.