1766
Windmill built on Clifton Down
James Walters was awarded £200 by the Society of Merchant Venturers to build a windmill on Clifton Down.
Site overview
Clifton Observatory is a former tower windmill on Clifton Down, overlooking the Avon Gorge and Clifton Suspension Bridge. The windmill was built in 1766 after James Walters received support from the Society of Merchant Venturers. It first worked for corn and was later used for grinding snuff, becoming known as the Snuff Mill.
Fires damaged the mill in 1768 and again in 1777, when the sails were left turning during a gale and the building burnt out. After decades as a ruin, William West leased the old mill in 1828 and converted it into an observatory with telescopes and a camera obscura. The building is now Grade II* listed and remains one of Bristol's most distinctive reused windmill towers.
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
Clifton Observatory began as a windmill on Clifton Down. In 1766 James Walters was awarded £200 by the Society of Merchant Venturers to build the mill. It was first used for grinding corn and later for grinding snuff, giving it the name the Snuff Mill.
The working life of the mill was repeatedly affected by fire. It was damaged in 1768, and repairs were funded by the Society of Merchant Venturers. On 30 October 1777 the mill caught fire during a gale after the sails were left turning, and the building was burnt out. The ruined tower then remained unused for many years.
In 1828 William West leased the ruined windmill for five shillings a year and began its conversion into an observatory. Telescopes and a camera obscura were installed, and later additions in 1835 extended the building. The former windmill tower became a well-known optical and viewing site above the Avon Gorge. Historic England describes the listed building as a former windmill, now camera obscura, with an eighteenth-century round tower and nineteenth-century observatory additions. Clifton Observatory was listed at Grade II* on 4 March 1977 and continues to preserve the fabric and public identity of Bristol's former Clifton Down windmill.
Timeline
1768
Windmill damaged by fire
The windmill was damaged by fire and repaired with support from the Society of Merchant Venturers.
1777
Windmill burnt out
The mill burnt out during a gale after the sails were left turning.
1828
Converted into observatory
William West leased the ruined windmill and converted it into an observatory with telescopes and a camera obscura.
1835
Observatory extended
William West extended the former windmill as part of the observatory complex.
1977
Grade II* listing
Clifton Observatory was listed at Grade II* as a former windmill, now camera obscura.
Sources and records
Historic England listed building entry
Clifton Observatory official history
Windmill World site entry
Wikipedia article: Clifton Observatory
Clifton Observatory official history
Windmill World site entry
Wikipedia article: Clifton Observatory