1875
Post mill re-erected at Little Dunmow
Robert Hasler bought the High Wych post mill and had it re-erected and refurbished at Little Dunmow.
Site overview
Throw's Mill was a post corn mill at Little Dunmow. The mill had been moved from High Wych and re-erected at Little Dunmow in 1875, where Robert Hasler refurbished it with patent sails and a fantail. It continued working until 1913, when the post mill was pulled down and sold to a building firm.
The seasoned oak was reused elsewhere, but the octagonal roundhouse remained. Later records describe the roundhouse as house converted, and Historic England archive photography recorded Throw's Mill at Little Dunmow in 1933. The site is now represented by the converted octagonal roundhouse, preserving the base of the former post mill within the Little Dunmow landscape.
Map
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No site photograph is currently available. Images will be added as field visits are carried out.
History
Throw's Mill was a post corn mill at Little Dunmow. It had earlier stood at High Wych, where it was the last post mill to be built in Essex. In 1875 Robert Hasler bought the mill, had it re-erected at Little Dunmow, and refurbished it. Patent sails and a fantail were fitted, while the old oak windshaft, poll head, tail wheel, and four common sails were discarded.
The mill worked at Little Dunmow until 1913. It was then pulled down and sold to a building firm, with the seasoned oak reused in a large house in Yorkshire. The octagonal roundhouse stayed in place and became the main surviving part of the site. Later specialist records describe the survival as a house-converted octagonal roundhouse, and a 1975 photographic record also showed the converted roundhouse.
The site therefore preserves the lower structural legacy of a relocated post mill rather than the mill body itself. Historic England archive material includes a 1933 photograph of Throw's Mill at Little Dunmow, while local conservation material records the windmill as known locally as Throw's Mill and demolished in 1913. The surviving converted roundhouse marks the position of the former post mill and its late working life in Little Dunmow.
Timeline
1875
Patent sails and fantail fitted
The relocated mill was refurbished with patent sails and a fantail, replacing the earlier common-sail arrangement.
1913
Post mill pulled down
Throw's Mill worked at Little Dunmow until 1913, when the post mill was pulled down and sold to a building firm.
1933
Throw's Mill photographed
Historic England archive photography recorded Throw's Mill at Little Dunmow in April 1933.
1975
Converted roundhouse photographed
The house-converted roundhouse of Throw's Mill was photographed in September 1975.
Sources and records
Windmill World site entry
Mills Archive site record
Historic England archive photograph
Little Dunmow Conservation Area Appraisal
High Wych Windmill local history article
Guy Blythman photographic register addenda
Mills Archive site record
Historic England archive photograph
Little Dunmow Conservation Area Appraisal
High Wych Windmill local history article
Guy Blythman photographic register addenda