It's a breeze as last working windmill in region gets sails back

The East Yorkshire landmark at Skidby has been without two of its sails for more than a year.

Yesterday they were dropped back in place using a 60-tonne crane during a four-hour operation before millwright Tom Davies tightened up the final bolt to complete a 15-month restoration project.

Museum attendant Tony Snowden said the weather conditions were ideal: "It went very smoothly. It looks quite hairy but we were so lucky with the weather – there wasn't a breath of wind.

"Ever since the restoration began there's been keen interest from local people. For people who've grown up in the area it's been part of the hillside and when they've looked across there's been something missing."

The work, funded by East Riding Council, which involved removing and repairing all four sails, was initially expected to be completed last March but some of the parts of the mill were found to be in worse condition than expected.

During the work the entire wooden cap was removed.

Although the windmill has had only two sails working for months, it has continued to turn out wholemeal flour.

The first record of a mill at Skidby is that of a wooden post mill in 1764. Post mills were made from timber, and looked like a large shed, with all the machinery inside.

The existing mill was built in 1821, and was extended to its five storeys in 1870. It is a popular tourist attraction and also houses the Museum of East Riding Rural Life.

The restoration – the first since 1931 – was carried out by specialists R Thompson and Sons, millwrights based at Alford in Lincolnshire.

The windmill, near Cottingham, is open to the public seven days a week from 10am to 5pm. Last admission is at 4.15pm.