1746
Main post dated
The main post of the post mill is inscribed “J.S. 1746.”
Site overview
Besthorpe Windmill is the surviving lower section of a post mill at Mill Farm on Sand Lane, Besthorpe. The mill is recorded as a corn mill and incorporates fabric dated to about 1746 and 1831. The surviving structure is a circular battered tower of two stages, built in brick and stone with timber structure within and a twentieth-century timber roof.
Brick buttresses carry stone blocks that support the projecting ends of the cross trees. The interior retains the main post, inscribed “J.S. 1746,” together with cross trees and quarter bars. A brick above the close-boarded doors is inscribed “TC 1831.” The building was first listed as Grade II on 17 October 1984.
Historic photographs record the mill before and after partial demolition, confirming the survival of the base rather than the full post-mill body.
Map
Map markers and directions links are provided for location reference only and do not indicate public access or permission to enter a site.
No site photograph is currently available. Images will be added as field visits are carried out.
History
Besthorpe Windmill stands at Mill Farm on Sand Lane, Besthorpe. The supplied coordinates match Besthorpe, not Tuxford. The mill was a post corn mill, with surviving fabric that records two main dates.
The main post is inscribed “J.S. 1746,” while brickwork above the close-boarded doors is inscribed “TC 1831.” The surviving building is the lower section of the post mill: a circular battered two-stage structure of brick and stone with timber elements inside and a twentieth-century timber roof. Brick buttresses carry stone blocks that support the projecting ends of the cross trees. The openings include close-boarded doors and shuttered openings with segmental heads.
Internally, the main post, cross trees, and quarter bars survive, giving the site unusually direct evidence of the post-mill structure. Historic photographs from the 1920s to 1940s record the mill and its later partial demolition. The surviving structure was first listed as Grade II on 17 October 1984.
The consulted sources do not identify a confirmed final working date.
Timeline
1831
Brickwork dated
Brickwork above the close-boarded doors is inscribed “TC 1831.”
1949
Partial demolition photographed
The windmill was photographed after partial demolition.
1984
Listed building status recorded
The windmill at Mill Farm was first listed as a Grade II listed building.
Sources and records
Historic England National Heritage List for England entry: Windmill at Mill Farm, Besthorpe
Windmill World entry: Besthorpe windmill, Nottinghamshire
Mills Archive database entry: Post mill, Besthorpe
Nottinghamshire Historic Environment Record entry for Besthorpe windmill
Historic England Archive photographic records for Besthorpe Windmill
List of windmills in Nottinghamshire
Windmill World entry: Besthorpe windmill, Nottinghamshire
Mills Archive database entry: Post mill, Besthorpe
Nottinghamshire Historic Environment Record entry for Besthorpe windmill
Historic England Archive photographic records for Besthorpe Windmill
List of windmills in Nottinghamshire