Edge Runner Millstones - Hessle UK - Preserved Machines on Public Display on Waymarking.com

The mill was originally driven by wind, and the tower of the windmill is still on site and can be visited. Aftter the sails were damaged in a storm the windmill was converted to steam power.

There are a few other stand alone millstones on site, but these show how they were configured and driven when the mill was working.

An information board next to edge runner millstones has the following information.

Mill Technology

When Hessle Whiting Mill was built c1810 it was powered by five 'roller-reefing' sails. These were removed in 1925 after being badly damaged during a storm. Supposedly the sails were struck by lightning! Thereafter the mill was driven by steam, diesel and later electric power.

The 6ft (182cm) diameter 'edge-runner= mil stones to your left, one sat in a large crushing bowl in the base of the mill's tower. The large entrance with the back doors was cut int the side of the tower, to allow the stones to be brought into the mill.

Curb-Ring

The cap, sails and fantail were mounted on a timber frame. Cast iron 'pigs' were fixed to the underside of the frame and rested on the curb-ring. as the blades of the fantail turned, it drove a cog that meshed with the rack seen on the outside of the curb. Horizontal wheels attached to the underside of the curb rotated the cap.

On the ground encircling the pair of mill stones, is the mill's curb ring. This is made from cast iron and originally sat on top of the mill's tower. It formed part of the mechanism that allowed the mill's cap to rotate on top of the tower and keep the sails facing into the wind.

Edge-Runner Mill Stones

Made from brick and concrete, the crushing bowl in which the stones sat was built during the 1920s. It can still be seen inside the tower today. The stones were powered by an electric motor in an underground chamber.

Steam Power

After the sails were removed the mill was powered by a steam engine (shown on the picture in red). The engine was housed inside a shed close to the mill's tower. Power from the engine was transferred to the mill's original crushing stones inside the tower by a system of shafts and bevel gears.

Type of Machine: Edge Runner Millstones Year the machine was built: Not listed Year the machine was put on display: Not listed Is there online documentation for this machine: Not listed

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