1796
Post mill built
Creeting St Mary Windmill was built in 1796 as a post mill.
Site overview
Creeting St Mary Windmill is the restored body of a former post mill at Creeting St Mary, Suffolk. The mill was built in 1796 and later dismantled around 1860. Its buck was moved to Houghton Park Farm, now The Old Hall, and later formed part of the Alder Carr Farm complex.
The patent sails were transferred to a tower mill at Kersey. The reused mill body served for many years as a dovecote and is the only surviving example in England of a reused post-mill buck. It was derelict by the late 1970s, restored in 1995, moved to a new position on the farm, and converted to a craft workshop.
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
Creeting St Mary Windmill was built in 1796 as a post mill. It originally stood elsewhere in the village and was fitted with four patent sails. Around 1860 the mill was dismantled.
Its patent sails were transferred to a tower mill at Kersey, while the timber buck was moved to the grounds of Houghton Park Farm, now The Old Hall. The mill body later became part of the Alder Carr Farm outbuilding complex. Instead of being destroyed, the buck was reused as a dovecote and retained all its original framing.
By the late 1970s it had become derelict. In 1995 it was restored, moved to a new position on the farm, and converted to a craft workshop. The structure is Grade II listed and is notable as the only surviving reused post-mill body of its kind.
Timeline
1860
Mill dismantled
The post mill was dismantled around 1860, and its patent sails were transferred to a tower mill at Kersey.
1860
Buck moved and reused
The mill body was moved to the farm and reused as a dovecote.
1995
Restored and repositioned
The derelict buck was restored in 1995, moved to a new position on the farm, and converted to a craft workshop.
Sources and records
Wikipedia article: Creeting St Mary Windmill
Suffolk Mills Group page: Creeting St Mary Windmill
Windmill World entry: Creeting St Mary post mill
Wikipedia list article: List of windmills in Suffolk
Windmill Photographic Register entry: Creeting St Mary post mill
Suffolk Mills Group page: Creeting St Mary Windmill
Windmill World entry: Creeting St Mary post mill
Wikipedia list article: List of windmills in Suffolk
Windmill Photographic Register entry: Creeting St Mary post mill