One of the oldest windmills in the UK was saved in ?170000 …

An extensive restoration that cost £170,000 and took three years saw one of Cambridgeshire's most impressive and unique monuments restored to its former glory. The project wasn't easy and involved some pretty impressive professional feats to make it happen.

Although historians cannot say without a doubt that Bourn Windmill is the oldest surviving windmill in the UK, it is certainly possible it could be. The earliest written record of the windmill is from 1636 but the style of it has barely changed since the 13th century, so it's thought that it may even be older.

Whether it is the very oldest or not, Bourn Windmill is perched in lovely countryside to the west of Cambridge^[1] and is an extremely important surviving piece of not only our county's history but British history too. When the relic was declared to be at risk of collapse in 2020, there was no doubt everything needed to be done to save it.

During the renovations, Bourn Windmill's entire body was lifted off the ground by six inches, suspended in mid-air, held there by metal supports (Image: Cambridge Past Present and Future)

Owned by Cambridge Past Present and Future since 1936, the team discovered back in 2020 that there was rot in the cross beams which meant it could fail and the mill could collapse.

With an emergency grant of £23,250 by Historic England and an extra £10,000 raised from members of the public through a fundraising appeal, as well as some small grants from South Cambridgeshire^[4] District Council, Bourn Parish Council, Paxton Parish Council and the Society for the Preservation of Ancient Buildings, the team were able to begin the renovations.

The project was led by Tim Buxbaum and was funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Historic England, The Pilgrim Trust and SPAB Mills. During the renovations in 2022, they replaced the huge 140-year-old beams that supported the mill.

In order to do this, they had to lift up the entire body of the structure off the ground by six inches and suspend it in mid-air, all while being held there by metal supports. The supporting beams were then removed and the rot on the wood was so bad that the workers were shocked the mill hadn't already collapsed.

The team also repaired a rotten window frame, stopped a leak in the buck and renovated the sails. Finally, the mill was repainted and the restored sails were re-installed.

The estimated cost of repairing the mill was around £170,000, with it closed for three years while the renovations took place. It is now open again for everyone to enjoy and appreciate, hopefully, for decades more to come.

The exterior of Bourn Windmill can be visited at any time and is free to see. You can see inside the mill and watch it in action on open days during the summer. It is unfortunately closed during the winter months.

Find out more about the restoration of Bourn Windmill on the Cambridge Past present and Future website^[5].

References

1. ^{^} Cambridge (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
2. ^{^} All the pubs in Cambridge that no longer exist including one loved by Pink Floyd (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
3. ^{^} See giant prehistoric millipede on Netflix's Life on Our Planet in Cambridge (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
4. ^{^} Cambridgeshire (www.cambridge-news.co.uk)
5. ^{^} Cambridge Past present and Future website (www.cambridgeppf.org)