1317
Windmill site recorded
A windmill on the Ashton site is recorded from 1317.
Site overview
Ashton Windmill is a restored tower mill at Chapel Allerton on the Isle of Wedmore in Somerset. A windmill on the site is recorded from 1317, while the present tower mill is dated in the main listing and local accounts to the eighteenth or early nineteenth century. It was a flour mill and later also ground beans and animal feed.
The mill has a circular stone tower, revolving cap, tailfan, four sails, surviving upper timber floors, grinding mechanisms, and corn-storage bays. It last worked in 1927 and was later restored after disuse. The building is Grade II* listed and is owned by Somerset Council, with local arrangements for opening and maintenance.
Current visitor information records temporary closure for maintenance from October 2025.
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
Ashton Windmill stands at Chapel Allerton on the Isle of Wedmore in Somerset. The site has a long milling history, with a windmill reference dated to 1317. The standing mill is a Somerset tower mill built of coursed, colour-washed rubble, with a revolving cap, tailfan, four sails, hardwood doors, boarded windows, and surviving internal timber floor structures.
The tower is recorded as about 7.5 metres high, with thick stone walls and sails of about 13 metres span. The mill was used for flour milling and also for grinding beans for cattle feed, with a stated grinding capacity of about 400 kilograms of corn per hour. Later accounts record auxiliary steam power added in 1894, refitting around 1900 using gear from Moorlinch tower mill, and strengthening hoops added to the tower.
Ashton Windmill stopped working in 1927. It was later restored, including work in the 1950s and 1970s, and now survives as a Grade II* listed heritage mill owned by Somerset Council. Visitor information records that the mill is usually opened seasonally, but separate current council information records temporary closure from October 2025 for maintenance.
Timeline
1832
Standing tower mill constructed
The standing Ashton Windmill is recorded as a circular four-storey stone tower mill constructed circa 1832.
1894
Auxiliary steam power added
Auxiliary power was added by a steam engine in 1894.
1900
Mill refitted and tower strengthened
The mill was refitted with gear from Moorlinch tower mill and iron hoops were added to strengthen the tower.
1927
Working life ended
Ashton Windmill stopped working in 1927.
1958
Windmill restored
The mill was restored after a period of disrepair.
2025
Temporary maintenance closure
Current council information records temporary closure from October 2025 due to maintenance.
Sources and records
Historic England National Heritage List for England entry: Ashton Windmill
Somerset Council visitor information for Ashton Windmill
Somerset Council film-location information for Ashton Windmill
List of windmills in Somerset
Off the Beaten Track in Somerset article on Somerset windmills
Somerset Council visitor information for Ashton Windmill
Somerset Council film-location information for Ashton Windmill
List of windmills in Somerset
Off the Beaten Track in Somerset article on Somerset windmills