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Steam engine used as auxiliary power
A steam engine was used when wind conditions were low.
Site overview
Upton Black Mill was a tarred red-brick tower drainage mill. Its name derived from the black tar finish applied to the brick tower. A date stone inscribed 1800 was set below a window facing the river, giving the construction date for the mill.
The tower had less batter in its upper section and was encircled by five iron bands. It carried a Norfolk boat-shaped cap with petticoat, gallery, and fan stage. The mill formed part of the drainage landscape of Upton and was later supplemented by engine power.
A Ruston & Hornsby diesel engine was installed to replace an earlier steam engine used when wind conditions were low. The diesel engine remained in the engine shed when recorded.
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
Upton Black Mill was built as a drainage mill and is identified as a black tarred Norfolk red-brick tower. The tower carried a date stone inscribed 1800 beneath a window facing the river, establishing the mill's early nineteenth-century origin. Its upper section had less batter than the lower part of the tower, and five iron bands encircled the structure.
The mill was fitted with a Norfolk boat-shaped cap with a petticoat, a gallery, and a fan stage. Its primary function was marsh drainage rather than corn milling. In later operation the wind-powered drainage installation was supplemented by engine power.
A steam engine was used when wind was low, and this was later replaced by a Ruston & Hornsby diesel engine. The diesel engine remained in the engine shed when the site was recorded. The surviving evidence identifies the tower, the engine-shed survival, and the transition from wind power to auxiliary mechanical power, but the final working date has not been identified.
Timeline
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Diesel engine installed
A Ruston & Hornsby diesel engine replaced the earlier steam engine.
1800
Drainage mill dated
A date stone inscribed 1800 was set beneath a window facing the river.
2011
Mill photographed as survivor
The mill was recorded as a surviving drainage tower mill at Upton.
Sources and records
Norfolk Mills page: Upton Black drainage windmill
WindmillWorld entry: Black Mill, Upton
Norfolk Mills drainage windmills overview
WindmillWorld entry: Black Mill, Upton
Norfolk Mills drainage windmills overview