Sylvester Manor welcomes all to attend its first Windmill Lighting on Friday, December 10.
The event — featuring cocoa, cookies, and carols — begins at 4 PM at Windmill Field, 21 Manwaring Road.
No RSVP is required. Dress warmly!
About the Windmill at Sylvester Manor
Nathaniel Dominy built the windmill in Southold in about 1810. He was an East Hampton carpenter and millwright of local renown. The windmill is the only surviving mill that he built on the North Fork, and one of a few left on the East End, Sylvester Manor says on its website.
Dominy submitted an invoice to the Southold millers revealing that the structure was built by hand in 186 days of labor, the Manor says.
When a mill on Shelter Island burned, the Dominy mill was hauled from Southold by barge to the Island, where it occupied a lot in the Town Center. Local miller Joseph Congdon operated it until about 1855.
It fell into gradual disuse. In 1879, Lillian Horsford purchased the mill in order to preserve it. The Horsfords had inherited the Sylvester Manor property and contributed to philanthropic causes throughout the community.
The mill remained in the Town Center and was even put back into service grinding meal and flour during a brief period of World War I food conservation initiatives, Sylvester Manor says. In 1926, Lillian’s sister Cornelia moved the mill to Sylvester Manor, where it has since presided from a rise in the farm fields along Manwaring Road.
Sylvester Manor is in the process of restoring the mill. It has a new foundation, new siding, new windshaft, and new blades, thanks to the generosity of donors. Still to come is the restoration of some of the internal mechanisms. The goal is to again grind grain between the millstones on the second floor of the structure.
If you’d like to make a donation to support the restoration effort or learn more about the windmill, follow this link.
