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North Ronaldsay, Peckhole Windmill
Windmill (18th Century)
Site Name North Ronaldsay, Peckhole Windmill
Classification Windmill (18th Century)
Alternative Name(s) Nesstoun; Peckhole Mills; Pechole Windmill
Canmore ID 3672
Site Number HY75SE 24.01
NGR HY 76305 52849
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/3672
- Council Orkney Islands
- Parish Cross And Burness
- Former Region Orkney Islands Area
- Former District Orkney
- Former County Orkney
HY75SE 24.01 76305 52849
For Peckhole, Meal Mill (HY 7628 5285), see HY75SE 50.
Near [the watermill HY75SE 50] is the conical stone base of a tower windmill.
J R Hume 1977
This is an nineteenth century turret post grain mill.
Visited by RCAHMS (GJD) 18 October 1980
NMRS REFERENCE
1 newcutting - missing at time of upgrade, 19/1/2005
Tapered, circular-plan remains of a windmill. 2.8 metres high, 3.6m in diameter at ground and 2.7m at wallhead. Random rubble. Remains of central timber post.
Peckhole was the last working windmill in Scotland, the rubble base topped by a jettied timber revolving sail house and 4 sails. This section is now missing but a drawing by T S Peace shows the mill in working order, with the long tail beam allowing the sail house to be moved to face the wind. The windmill operated until about 1908 when it was replaced by a diesel engine-powered meal mill to its immediate north west. (ref: Historic Scotland)
Publication Account (1996)
Only the conical stone base of the windmill survives, but its wooden upper parts are shown in the drawing on p.OO. This was the last working windmill in Scotland, for it was sti ll in use into the opening years of the 20th century alongside the water-mill built in the early 19th century. The latter building is two-storeyed with a large kiln-vent. Both were replaced by a mill powered by an oil-using engine in 1908.
Information from ‘Exploring Scotland’s Heritage: Orkney’, (1996).
