2017-06-24 Sat

On 20th June, three vertical se-tenant pairs were released by Royal Mail featuring windmills and watermills. Nutley Windmill in East Sussex, England, and the New Abbey Corn Mill in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland are featured on the stamps.

In 1968, the Uckfield and District Preservation Society was established to protect Nutley Windmill which is the last operational open trestle post mill in England. Some parts of the mill were made in 1550 somewhere else and brought here around 1820. The 18th century New Abbey Corn Mill is also operational where oatmeal is still being made.

The £1.40 stamp features the Ballycopeland Windmill on Ards Peninsula in County Down, Northern Ireland. The Cheddleton Flint Mill in Staffordshire, England is depicted on the bottom half of this pair. Ballycopeland is a stone tower windmill that was built in the 19th century and was used until World War I. The Cheddleton Flint Mill has two waterwheels, one was made in 1250. It was used to grind grain first and then later to grind flint for pottery in the late 18th century.

The Woodchurch Windmill near Ashford, Kent, England; and the Felin Cochwillan Mill at Gwynedd, Wales are featured on the £1.57 stamps. The Woodchurch Windmill is a smock mill where only the cap of the windmill turns to meet the wind and not the entire post turning. Two windmills faced the village of Ashford. Felin Cochwillan Mill, Gwynedd, is privately owned one that was built 200 years ago. It was first used to make cloth and then was used to grind grains.

The £1.40 stamps are used on international letters up to 20 grams, the £1.57 stamps are used on letters to Europe up to 100 grams and the first-class rate is 65 pence. First-day covers, postcards with the stamp designs, presentation packs with mint examples and information by Martin Watts, an expert on mills are other products that are available.