Halnaker Windmill

Halnaker Windmill is a disused Grade II listed windmill built in 1740. At a height of 400 feet it stands prominently on the South Downs near Chichester. Halnaker Windmill was working until struck by lightning in 1905, damaging the sails and wind shaft. It was restored in 1934 by Neve’s, the Heathfield Millwrights as a memorial to the wife of Sir William Bird. Further repair work was done in 1954 by E Hole and Sons, The Burgess Hill Millwrights. The windmill was again restored in 2004.

The works at Halnaker Windmill involved the replacement of the handmade clay tiles which provide the weatherproof enclosure to the structure of the windmill.  The project required specialist skills owing to the nature of the tiles and the means by which they were fixed to the structure.  Following replacement of the tiles and other works to the windows and door, the sails were fully refurbished and subsequently re-installed onto the windmill.

 Halnaker Windmill is a listed structure sitting on top of Halnaker Hill which, itself, is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.  There is no means of vehicular access to the windmill and all materials had to be transported from the contractor’s compound in the car park at the bottom of the hill using specialised vehicles to ensure any damage to the pathway leading up to the windmill was limited.