Cromer Windmill

Cromer Windmill is an 18th-century post-mill, reportedly dating to around 1720, situated at a road junction northeast of the village of Ardeley. It ceased operation around 1923, underwent repairs in 1937, and was restored with sails and a fantail between 1967 and 1969. The timber-framed structure features horizontal white weatherboarding extending over an ogee-shaped cap. It is supported above an octagonal red brick roundhouse covered with a felted roof. The mill includes an elaborately geared fantail with openwork blades and a carriage fixed to a broad ladder at the rear. A cast iron windshaft originally supported four patent sails (without shutters), which have since been dismantled and stored nearby.

The mill’s unique design incorporates a two-story rotating body mounted on a very large faceted central post, supported by a large timber trestle and sheltered by the roundhouse. The body is carried on a massive crown-tree in the middle floor, suspending the rest of the timber frame. Two stones are now positioned on the upper floor, within the mill’s breast, with cast iron gearing and centrifugal governors situated at a higher level on the lower floor. A hoist system facilitated lifting grain bags to the top of the mill, while wooden chutes conveyed the ground grain to the lower floor. A steep ladder connects the two floors, and small shuttered apertures provide interior lighting. The brake-wheel and brake have been dismantled. The stones were previously arranged with one in the tail and one in the breast, but this configuration proved problematic and was altered, with the tailpole replaced by the current automatic fantail. The mill is located on an artificial mound, a site acquired around 1222 for a manorial windmill.

It is considered a prominent landmark and the only remaining post-mill in the county.