Restoration of Lowfield Heath Mill

Biography of Frank W. Gregory

To view all catalogued items relating to Lowfield Heath Mill, at its two different sites, click here and click here (some items may be duplicated).

The rescue and restoration of Lowfield Heath Windmill (Grade II listed), took nearly twenty years to achieve and there is substantial correspondence and minutes of meetings; more than any other mill he was involved with. From this, it is possible to trace the history and progress of the restoration: the ownership of the land change hands several times and likewise the development plans changed; Lowfield Heath village was a victim of boundary changes and moved from Surrey to Sussex; SIAS mooted the idea to dismantle the mill and, along with the local Charlwood Society, battled for over five years to persuade the local authorities and the landowners to agree to the mill being moved to another site; funds had to be raised to find and purchase a suitable site; and qualified engineers had to be found to dismantle and rebuild the mill. It is common during mill restoration for the building to be taken back to a basic shell as was the case with Nutley. However, this was the first time a mill had been dismantled, removed to another site and rebuilt.

Frank was first asked to get involved by Monica Dance of SPAB in a letter dated 27th April 1967:

“Incidentally, I wonder if I can have your help with regard to Lowfield Heath. Is this too far out for you? In the near future, I simply must call together a sub-committee for the purpose of raising funds and finding experienced volunteers to help with the work; Mr Hole [the millwright] begins work at the end of the month!!”

Frank does not keep a record of the work carried out by Mr Hole, nor of his own involvement in the project from 1967 until 1979/80. As Lowfield Heath was about 20 miles from Brighton, Frank seems to have acted in an advisory capacity but kept informed of developments, copied into correspondence and sent minutes of meetings.

By the end of the 1970s, the area around Lowfield Heath was included in a development plan for housing and shops. In April 1980, Ted Henbery, Secretary of SIAS, contacted Mr A.G.W. Bussell, an architect with Stanley Bragg Partnership appointed by the developers Federated Homes. SIAS was concerned because the outline planning permission granted by Crawley Borough Council made no mention of the fate of Lowfield Heath Windmill and Cottage. Ted recommended Frank as a man who “has considerable experience in restoring windmills”. When Ted, Frank and Mr Bussell visited the mill on 1st May 1980, the basic structure was sound but first aid was required to protect the trestle and repair the weatherboarding. Frank produced his report estimated costs at £29,000 including an estimate of £10,000 for new sail frames. Ted Henbury produced a summary of the work to be done. Federated Homes agreed to the repairs and hoped that a local group would restore the mill internally to create a static display within the proposed development, even though a motor tyre and petrol station were to be built to the west of the mill.

A public enquiry of the proposed development began on 1st July 1980 but Frank neither kept a record of the outcome nor whether the proposed first-aid on the mill took place. However, one can assume that the development was not approved because in April 1984 Ted Henbury was in contact with the new landowners, the British Steel Corporation Pension Fund and the Thomas Mason Trust, who offered £3000 towards the restoration. However, by then storm damage and vandalism had taken their toll and a copy of a letter from Kenneth Major dated 17th November 1984, indicates that the Lowfield Heath restoration was a priority for SPAB.

In December 1984, the local Charlwood Society Chairman, Brendon Sewill, asked the BSC Pension Fund for permission to move the mill to another site. However, it was another year before this was granted. By that time, the mill had suffered further vandalism and storm damage. Ted Henbery reported that unless urgent repair work was done, there was a very real danger that the mill would collapse. The Lowfield Heath Windmill Trust was created in association with SIAS, the Surrey Industrial History Group and the Charlwood Society. Frank surveyed the mill and declared that the trestle was not in danger but the buck needed weatherboarding as a priority.

Once permission was granted to relocate the mill, Ted Henbery sought to secure a construction firm that could do the job. Meanwhile various offers had been made for an alternative mill site. Eventually, a site at the Gatwick Aviaries was the preferred option and a 99 year lease on a peppercorn rent was drawn up with the owners. To get an idea of the costs involved and the scale of the job, a local firm, Longleys, supplied a plan to remove the mill and costings of £65,000. Frank also noted that the quote by Edwin Hole of Burgess Hill to replace the stock and sweeps was almost £24,000. Remedial repair work to replace the weatherboarding and weatherproof the trestle was carried out by volunteers. Planning and grant applications had been submitted by June 1986.

Eventually, by the autumn of 1986, the West Sussex Rural Engineering Company based at Singleton had provided a detailed specification for the removal of the mill at a cost of about £60,000. The company had recently been involved in the successful mill restoration project at High Salvington and West Blatchington. Frank along with Ron Martin and P. James met a representative from the Science Museum as part of the grant application to discuss the plans. Planning permission and Listed Building Consent to remove and re-erect the mill had also been granted; the Crawley Borough Planning Officer encouraged the Lowfield Heath Windmill Trust to move the mill as soon as possible.

At the AGM of the Lowfield Heath Windmill Trust in February 1987, it was reported that funds had been raised for £50,000. Thus the work to remove the mill could begin in April. Frank gave a slideshow and it was proposed to form a Friends of Lowfield Heath Windmill group in order to raise funds to restore it to full working order and maintain it afterwards. The Horley Mirror and the North Sussex Evening Argus ran stories about the restoration project, the need for volunteers and the fundraising appeal for £25,000.

The mill was dismantled in July 1987 but Frank has no written record of how it was done other than the original specification from the West Sussex Rural Engineering Company. However, it was recorded in the Friends of Lowfield Heath newsletter that had it not been dismantled it would certainly have been destroyed in the October Hurricane. The unusual shape of the roundhouse required designs to be drawn up for the foundations and brickwork. Eventually Ron Martin drew the plans and Mitchells of Horley were contracted to dig and make the foundations.

The minutes of the Friends of Lowfield Heath AGM in November 1987 record that Frank was elected to the committee and was described as “knowing more about windmills and their restoration than anyone else in Sussex or Surrey!” The dismantling of the mill was described along with an outline of the work still to be done and the hope that once the sails are attached, Lowfield Heath Windmill may once again grind corn by 1990.

Again Frank does not keep a written record of the re-erection and restoration of the windmill. The next set of minutes from November 1988 record that the trestle had been erected onto the roundhouse piers and covered with tarpaulin. The last letter Frank had was a confidential letter from Brendon Sewill of the Charlwood Society dated 21st December 1989. Princess Alexandra had agreed to attend a ceremony to mark the completion of the restoration of the windmill on 10th April 1990. It was hoped by then that Peter Derby would have erected at least the first pair of sails.