Top Growland's Mill Easton · Dorset · England

Top Growland's Mill is the southern of the two surviving Portland windmills south of Easton, on the Isle of Portland. It stands close to Cottonfield's Mill, the northern tower, and together the two structures form the only standing historic windmill remains in Dorset. Top Growland's Mill is recorded as an empty cylindrical stone tower with a slight inner taper at the top.

The Portland windmills have a long documentary history. A windmill on the island was recorded in the Land Revenue Accounts of 1608, and two mills appeared on William Simplon’s map of 1626. They were later shown on the Hutchins map of 1710, where they were depicted as prominent local landmarks. Their origin is not firmly dated, but the stone towers are regarded as early examples of the tower-mill form and were probably built by local craftsmen.

Top Growland's Mill worked as a corn windmill. The two mills were traditionally operated by the Pearce family, and their working arrangement would have included a rotating cap, windshaft, sails, main wheel, wallower gearing and millstones. The surviving masonry towers are short and robust, while the timber caps, sails and machinery have been lost.

The mills ceased working in the 1890s as Portland’s rail and road links made mass-produced flour and bread more readily available. The southern tower gained a later defensive use during the Second World War, when it served as a look-out post. It was listed at Grade II in September 1978, renovated by ARC Ltd in 1991 and received further conservation attention in 2000. Top Growland's Mill remains a highly significant Portland landmark, preserving the masonry shell of one of Dorset’s earliest and rarest windmill survivals.