Felin Wynt

Cadw's description

Location

Set back from the N side of a country road running between Penmon and Glan-yr-afon, N of the village of Llangoed; c0.6km NNW of the Church of St Cawdraf.

History

Formerly known as Melin Llangoed, erected by Henry Williams in 1741, one of the earliest tower mills on the island. Sold, along with the adjacent farmland, to John Hughes of Caernarfon in 1787. The next documented evidence of the mill's history is in the mid C19; auctioned for sale in 1842, and occupied by Reverend William John Lewis. The mill is then recorded as being the property of prosperous local landowner Major Chadwick, who rented out the mill, cottage and farmland to Owen Jones. Owen is recorded as miller in 1883 and retained the tenancy of the mill until its closure in 1921. In 1926 all the metalwork, except the cast-iron windshaft, was removed for scrap and the mill stood as an empty shell until 1960 when it was bought by a civil engineer called Stanley Flory. Flory worked as a construction engineer on the Shanghai Waterworks, and used his expertise to install a watertank in the hollow tower, which then provided water for his house at Tan-y-Felin. During the conversion the mill's old windshaft was utilised to help support an internal floor and a spiral stairway was installed to give access to a viewing platform at the top of the tower.

Exterior

Circular windmill with sloping wall of locally quarried rubblestone masonry, mortared; partly rendered. Three storeys. Rectangular window openings at 1st and 2nd floors. Part of top of wall is missing. Roof, as railed platform formed at somewhat lower level.

Interior

Interior not inspected at the time of the survey.

Reason for designation

Listed as a substantially intact windmill tower, one of only 18 surviving on Anglesey. In early-mid C19 there were over 40 windmills operating on the island, grinding the large volumnes of corn then being produced. Felin Wynt is of particular interest as one of the earliest surviving towers on the island.