Vintage Wooden Windmills

[Vintage Windmills]

My other main hobby is restoring 1890 to 1920's antique water pumping windmills, especially the wooden wheeled ones. Typically all that remains is the cast iron central ironwork.

Many of you may not be aware of the vaneless style, but they were once common on american farms, especially in the midwest and great plains. They fold like umbrellas and govern with centrifugal force. There were once a thousand companies making windmills. The mass production of windmills allowed the west to be settled.

Here are some pics of one special one I've restored personally. You can see the wheel in the off position (basket shape) and on position (plate shape). As the wind gets strong, it goes from plate to basket shape automatically.