Wimbledon Common has been restored to its former glory after the sails of its iconic windmill were replaced.
Back in August 2015, a wooden sail weighing one ton came crashing through the roof of the Grade II listed Windmill Museum. The sail was believed to have collapsed because of water damage to the building over a number of years.
The destruction caused by the fallen sail
The remaining sails were later removed for restoration.
August 2015: Windmill sail smashes through Wimbledon Common museum roof
August 2015: Wimbledon skyline loses iconic landmark as Grade-II listed windmill sheds sails for restoration
Since then, the Wimbledon and Putney Commons Conservators and the trustees of the Wimbledon Windmill Museum Trust have been working to raise the money to repair the damage.
They managed to raise £140,000 in total, including a £100,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, and have used the money to repair the missing sail as well as replacing part of the balustrades on the balcony and partially refurbishing the tower.
Cranes were used to replace the sails
Speaking on Wednesday, November 9, the chief executive of the Wimbledon and Putney Commons Conservators, Simon Lee, thanked the Heritage Lottery Fund for their funding and said: “After an absence of just over 15 months, the sails to the Wimbledon Windmill were today re-installed.
“The operations by our specialist millwrights Owlsworth IJP went very smoothly, and the major capital works are now nearly complete, just in time for the bicentenary celebrations in 2017.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here