Visit Sydney Australia

In the early days, windmills were a prominent features of the Sydney skyline. Sydney's first windmill was erected by and for use of the military at the top of Grosvenor Street. The mill tower was built of stone and the machinery and grindstones were imported from England. Damaged by violent storms in June 1799, the mill was operational again in 1802 and remained in use until its demolition in the 1840s. Governor Hunter built another mill in 1798 to the south of the earlier windmill just near present day Grosvenor Street which remained operational for less than ten years.

Gov. Hunter brought out the essential working parts of a public windmill when he arrived from England in September 1795. The four grindstone wheels, wooden shaft and associated ironworks cost £99/18/- and came out with a scale model to assist in its erection. Operational by the early months of 1797, it was never a success. The millwright sent out from England to operate the mill had to be discharged at considerable expense because he was unable to manage the job. Some of the sails were stolen in its 5th month of operation and though its designers claimed the four blade mill would last 200 years, it had totally collapsed in its third year. A storm damaged the head in 1805 and by 1810 only the tower was left. The walls of the never completed Fort Phillip were built around the tower in 1805. The tower was eventually demolished to make way for the Observatory buildings erected on its site in 1858.

In 1804 Gov. King brought millwright Nathaniel Lucas back from Norfolk Island prison to Sydney to build a wooden octagonal, post type windmill with 4 blades for the Government on Church Hill. The first of its type in Sydney, the upper unit, holding the propellers rotated on a post with their direction being determined by sails placed like rudders. The mill was prefabricated on Norfolk Island and shipped together with another two mills on the HMS Investigator. Their millstones were also manufactured in Norfolk Island. Lucas was required to build two mills for the Government and in return he was granted the right to run his own mill at another location. Whilst the exact location of the the Church Hill mill is not known, it is believed to be where the toll gates for the Sydney Harbour Bridge now stand. Completed in mid 1805 within the space of six weeks and operated by Lucas at that time, the mill was capable of grinding six bushels per hour. Lucas operated the Church Hill mill for a time. It was advertised for public lease in about 1823, but soon fell into disrepair. The second mill Lucas built for the Government was erected on the site of Fort Phillip (Sydney Conservatory) in February 1806. An octagonal smock mill, its frame was 12 metres high.

Lucas built his own mill on a quarter acre block of land in the Government Domain which he leased. The mill, which was also prefabricated in Norfolk Island, was erected and brought into operation in 1805 on a site believed to be where the Shakespeare Memorial stands near the State Library of NSW. Lucas later leased this mill to Henry Kable and Underwood. It was advertised for auction in 1807 and again in 1811 and was known to have been still standing in 1819.

One of the colony's first free settlers, surgeon and apothecary John Boston, who arrived in Sydney in 1795, built a mill in the Domain in 1802 on Government ground near the Huntsman and Dogs statue in the Royal Botanical Gardens on the site of the Garden Palace not far from Lucas's mill. Located near the government bakery, it was erected on land leased by First Fleeter John Palmer who built another mill nearby at a later date. The mill was in use by 1813 and was still standing in 1836. A second mill, known as Palmer's Mill, was erected by Palmer in 1807, where the Arthur Phillip statue now stands. This displeased the Governor, William Bligh, who refused to renew the lease on the land but Palmer defiantly stayed on. It remained in use until 1813 when the new Governor Lachlan Macquarie was successful in seizing the land and having the mill demolished, using Palmer's land for the Government House stables (today's Conservatorium of Music) which he had built.

Barnett Levy, the brother of Sydney businessman Solomon Levy, arrived in Sydney from London in 1821 to work for his brother. Solomon owned the Royal Hotel in George Street and Barnett built a warehouse behind it. In 1826 he attempted to erect a windmill on top of his warehouse but the Government refused to approve its construction as it was feared it would be a danger to the public. Levy went ahead and built the mill anyway, but at the front of the building, opening it for business in January 1828. The 27 metre high mill was rarely used and Levy soon abandoned it and proceeded to pursue his interests in live theatre. His Royal Theatre was initially a success, however it burned to the ground in 1840 after falling into disuse three years after his death.

Millers Point

The most well known of Sydney's early windmills is that of John Leighton, which stood in Millers Point and gave rise to the locality's name (Jack the Miller's Point) and Windmill Street. Leighton arrived in Sydney as a convict in 1804. He bought several acres of land at Millers Point in 1814 and erected his mill there soon after. By the 1820s there were three mills operating on the point, all of which are believed to have been operated by Leighton. The first, erected in 1814, was located near Bettington Street on the high ground near on on the corner of Rodens Lane. The houses pictured left today occupy the site of this mill. The second mill was built to the west of Merriman Street on land granted to Joseph Underwood in 1817 for the purpose of erecting a windmill. Located in the southern corner of Clyne Reserve, it was demolished prior to 1842 to make way for a residence to be built on the site. Another mill was built to its south near Merriman Street on land that has now been reclaimed and removed to make way for the Millers Point wharves.

Pyrmont

John Macarthur, who owned the whole Pyrmont Peninsula at the time, built Pyrmont's only windmill in 1810 on one of the highest points of his land. Located in an area bounded today by Church Street, Point Street and Ways Terrace, the mill was known to be still standing and operational in 1832. St Bartholomews Church of England, which has since been demolished, was built on the site of the mill.

Darlinghurst

The ridge of Darlinghurst was a popular site for windmills in the early 19th century. A merchant named Thomas Clarkson built a windmill of stone, three stories high with 4 blades. The exact location is not known but is believed to be near the end of Liverpool Street and not far north of the old Darlinghurst gaol. Two post mills stood for many years not far from Clarkson's mill to its north, on Liverpool Street near Darley Street. One of the mills is thought to have been Kable's mill relocated. Another large mill stood for many years in Caldwell Street at the top of Beares Steps. With a large stone tower and four blades each about 12 metres long, the mill's height is believed to have been in the vicinity of 32 metres. In 1825, both Thomas Hyndes and Henry Ashley applied for permission to build a mill here and it would appear this mill was built by Ashley on his property. By the mid 1860s the mill had fallen into disrepair. An attempt was made to convert it into workmen's residences in 1865 though it had been demolished by 1873.