Historic Wolverhampton windmill rebuilt after gas explosion
An 18th-century windmill has been fully restored after a devastating gas explosion reduced it to rubble.
The Grade ll-listed building, based on Windmill Lane, in Castlecroft, Wolverhampton, was destroyed in October 2018.
The Windmill’s owner Ian Thorpe was left with burns and taken to hospital after the explosion.
But a year on The Windmill has been fully restored and now Mr Thorpe wants to commemorate its return with a special plaque.
The grandfather, aged in his 70s, believes the windmill is the oldest house in Wolverhampton and one of the oldest inhabited windmills in the country.
The landmark even gave the name to the road it is based on.
It has taken a special effort to rebuild it, with contractors using handmade bricks from Turkey.
After the gas explosion the structure’s bricks were left scattered across Mr Thorpe’s front garden.
Among them was a very rare one, which, Mr Thorpe recalled, read: “This mill was built by John Chamberlin 1720”.
But now the finished structure looks identical to the original version.
Mr Thorpe said: “This is the oldest inhabited windmill in the country. It is 300 years old.
“All the surrounding area was cornfields when it was built. This is the oldest house in Wolverhampton.
“I am having a plaque made to say that I rebuilt it in 2019.”
Mr Thorpe said he was “given the impression” by Wolverhampton Council that he had a duty to rebuild it as it was a listed building.
It is believed it used to belong to the Mander family, successful 19th-century industrialists, who also built the landmark Wightwick Manor.
A black-and-white photograph, in the Express & Star archive, shows The Windmill in 1973 when it was surrounded by grass and a small, wooden fence.
This is in stark contrast to today’s surroundings, located next to a busy road.
The Windmill was given its listing in 1977 when it was recognised that the building had a historical importance to the local area.
Planning records of the building date back to 1888 on Wolverhampton Council’s archives when an applicant put in a request regarding a “self-contained flat”.
It is believed the building was once used as a windmill but it was converted to a domestic dwelling in 1850.
The most recent planning application was for Mr Thorpe to rebuild the entire structure, which had to be knocked down over safety fears.
Much of the old windmill was left crumbled and strewn over Mr Thorpe’s property. The Windmill also adjoins a single-storey building, which is part of the house.
Wolverhampton Council planners gave permission to rebuild the structure in March.
