Latest News - July 31st 2009
 
Shipley Windmill has now closed

Sadly the lease for the windmill has not been extended, so the Trustee's have,  reluctantly, handed the mill back to its owner.

The Friends held a final barbecue at the mill on 18th July.  There was an excellent attendance at this function and in spite of the sad circumstances it was a happy event, with first-class food being provided by the catering team.

To mark the event the engine was started up and run for a considerable time.  There is a video of the engine operating which we hope will be available on line shortly.

The decision to waive the entrance charge for the remaining Open Days and the recent publicity led to a bumper number of visitors to the mill at the open days this year. All visitors were impressed with what they saw and heard about the mill and milling, and almost without exception, they are deeply saddened by the closure.

On the last Sunday opening we had so many visitors that there was a queue of people waiting to get in all the way from the gate to the mill door!  BBC South sent a camera crew and a short interview was broadcast on the evening news.

The Shipley Windmill Trust have spent all their remaining funds on putting the mill in as good a state as they could before the mill was handed back to what is currently an unknown future. The fantail drive has had four new bearings and new remote lubricators fitted and is now operating well; The lower part of the weatherboarding has been given three coats of paint; the grass has been cut, the hedge has been specially trimmed and a new gate to the mill grounds has been supplied and fitted.

However there is a lot of outstanding urgent work which needs to be done to the mill, including rebuilding the sweeps and completing the painting of the smock tower.  We hope that the owner will be able to get all these jobs done before the condition of the mill starts to deteriorate.

The Trustees have decided that the Trust will continue in operation for the time being, to keep an eye on the state of the mill. 

For Further Information about the Trust, contact
Jim Woodward-Nutt
Chairman
Shipley Windmill Charitable Trust
Telephone 
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