Green’s windmill stands proud on Nottingham’s skyline, a frail reminder to the life gone by, but still a strong influence on the city’s future. You see that this historical building has become a fascinating museum and also a focus of learning for the city’s school children.
The windmill was built in 1807 and was owned and operated by George Green, a mathematical physicist. After his death, it was derelict for over 100 years, but when staff at Nottingham University heard that it was to be demolished, they started fundraising. By 1979, they had enough money to buy the mill. It was presented to the city of Nottingham, and after 5 years of careful restoration, Green’s Mill was opened to the general public as a small local museum – a tribute to the genius of the local man who contributed greatly to the scientific world.
There’s a short climb up to the mill from the free car park, and on a good day, you may like to take a picnic and enjoy the peace and tranquility of the parkland surrounding the mill. There’s a decent view and place for children to play.
This is a working mill, and although output is not incredibly large, there will always be enough freshly milled flour for visitors to buy. The smell of the mill as you enter for the first time is "proper country," and if you let your imagination run, you can believe that you’re in the middle of rural England. Make your way steadily to the top and you’ll have a great view of Nottingham and the surrounding area. As you climb the stairs, the mill’s "rooms" have clear explanations of how the milling process works, and you can inspect, close up, milling artifacts and the giant crushing millstones.
Around the mill’s small courtyard is the building that houses the interactive exhibition. Although this is aimed at the children’s educational programme, it has a number of experiments introduced by George Green. I’m not proud, so I don’t mind telling you that I had a go on most of them. A short video takes you through the history of George’s windmill.
This is a small museum, and you’ll probably only need 1 hour to fully explore it. If you’re in a large group (12 or more), it may be worth ringing beforehand to make sure there isn’t another large group visiting. If you have to wait, there’s a decent compact coffee bar, and on a bright summer’s day, it can be fairly relaxing to sit in the courtyard and watch the world go by.
A small museum shop is on site, and there you can buy the locally milled organic flour, a range of books, and scientific games. At least you can assure yourself that any toys bought here have a scientific basis to them – so learning can be fun.
For more information, check out the website at www.greensmill.org.uk.