I have just added this to the map of places to fly your drone at Drone Scene:
Pitstone Windmill is a Grade II listed post mill located near the villages of Pitstone and Ivinghoe in Buckinghamshire.
It is believed to date from the early 17th century and may have been built around 1627, a date carved into the timber framework. However, tree-ring analysis suggests some of the wood used in its structure came from trees felled in the 1590s, meaning parts of the mill could be older.
For nearly 300 years, the windmill was used to grind locally grown grain into flour for the surrounding villages. In 1874 it was bought by the 3rd Earl Brownlow of the nearby Ashridge Estate and leased to a local farmer who ran it successfully as a milling business.
In 1902 a severe storm badly damaged the windmill, making it uneconomical to repair, and it fell into ruin. The derelict structure was later donated to the National Trust in 1937. Restoration began in 1963 through the efforts of volunteers, and by 1970 the mill was working again and able to grind corn once more.
Structurally, Pitstone Windmill is a post mill, meaning the whole wooden body sits on and rotates around a central vertical post so the sails can be turned to face the wind. It originally had four sails and was operated using a tailpole to position the mill.
