Back in the middle of December, I
received the following email from our Treasurer,
Eleanor asking for help in identifying the Tower
Mill (pictured)
….
do you think this query about a
windmill could go into the next newsletter please?
It's from my brother-in-law Mike Yates.
Mike’s email read:
“..At a postcard
fair yesterday, I bought a real photographic
postcard of a tower mill in a somewhat derelict
state. The card was postmarked Jan 8, 1905 and was
sent from Winchester to a Winchester address.
I was told by
another mill enthusiast that it showed Chalton mill
but I had some doubts about this. When later I
checked on my postcard collection, my doubts were
confirmed, ie it is not Chalton
Are you able to
identify it or is there anyone in the Hampshire
Mills Group that can? Any help would be much
appreciated. There is no place name or publisher’s
name on the card so perhaps my guess that it is a
Hampshire mill is wrong.”
David forward the query to Guy
Blythman, an author and authority on British
Windmills. His response was swift:
…. The photograph
you have sent me is of Owslebury corn mill in its
decline. The travelling stage for servicing the
sails, visible in the background, can also be seen
in the photo of the mill in working order, in Triggs.
***************************
The reason I felt that I should
publish this sequence of communications (even though
the mystery is now solved) is that it shows very
well how good co-operation, sharing information and
knowing the right people, can sometimes achieve
excellent results.
