The Windmill

The windmill shown in the Willingdon photos was always known to me as the Polegate windmill. I remember it when it was in working order and watching the mill stones grinding the grain. This was in the 1950s when the Council houses were starting to be built there. Later the mill closed and went into decline for some years until it was decided to restore it. I knew the gentleman who was given the job of cleaning out the resident pigeon population and so secured quite a few very plump pigeons which were delicious, they having been so well fed on the grain that had been left stored in the mill.

Polegate, like Willingdon, has grown considerably since those early days as when I used to walk to Polegate from Lower Willingdon there were few house between the two villages, whereas now they are practically continuous.

Also, I was very familiar with Wannock Tea Gardens as I used to walk through them on my way to The Glen on Jevington Road which was a favourite play area for me and my friends. We used to look for eels in the creek that ran through The Glen, the same creek that fed into the Old Mill Gardens to drive their water mill.  On one occasion we took a picnic with us and on the way home I was carrying an empty lemonade bottle. Going through the gardens we would pass a silver globe known as 'The Witches Circus'. It was entertaining in that it would distort reflections etc, and I was putting it to use with my lemonade bottle when I accidently hit it. It shattered into numerous pieces and I was promptly apprehended by Mr Wootton the proprietor for wilful damage.  The police were involved but I convinced them that it was an accident and no further action followed apart from the confiscation of the bottle (there was 3d return on that!).

This incident is recorded in a book called 'The Gardens at Wannock by Jennifer Wootton. (Honest; it was an accident.)

Jeff Miller
NZ