Click on the following link to read the blog and see the fabulous images of the Tunbridge Wells mills:

http://anke.blogs.com/anke/2012/01/windmill.html

The calendar is on sale in Mayfield post office.

Very many thanks to Rotherfield & Mark Cross Bonfire Society who presented Argos Hill Windmill Trust with a cheque for £470 at their quiz night last Saturday evening!

Funding is allocated between three charities based on customer voting. We have been chosen as one of the three charities in the three months leading up to Christmas.

If you shop in John Lewis in Tunbridge Wells, please ask for a green token at the checkout to enable you to place a vote!

Mayfield church is just visible in the lower right corner.

These photos probably date from the early 1950s, and would have been taken before W. Sands of Heathfield carried out the original restoration work in 1955-1956.

Saturday 8th October: 7:00pm for 7:30pm at the Memorial Hall, Mayfield. Fabulous 40s - 50s music provided by the Jon Hamilton Big Band consisting of 18 musicians and 2 vocalists. For a vegetarian or gluten-free option telephone Jenny on 01892 853161.

Mayfield Village Hall is going to swing on 8th October!

8PM at Mayfield Memorial Hall. It is an open evening so all welcome. Hope to see you there!

Donations can also be made by cheque. Please contact us for more details.

Do you have any old postcards or photographs of the mill? If so, we'd love to hear from you. Please contact us here.

- Saturday 17th September: we will be running a stall at the Mayfield Carnival Street Market to promote the mill. From 12:00 in Mayfield High Street.

- Friday 30th September: Argos Hill Windmill talk for the Mayfield Local History Society. Philip Hicks and Richard Howes will give a talk on the history of Argos Hill Windmill, it's current state and future plans. 8PM at Mayfield Memorial Hall. It is an open evening so all welcome.

- Saturday 8th October: Big band evening with supper. 7:00pm for 7:30pm at the Memorial Hall, Mayfield. Music provided by the Jon Hamilton Big Band. Tickets and the table plan are available at Rosina's, on Mayfield High Street. £15 including a 2 course supper, admission by ticket only. For a vegetarian or gluten-free option telephone Jenny on 01892 853161. Fabulous 40s - 50s music from the Jon Hamilton Big Band, consisting of 18 musicians and 2 vocalists, Mayfield Village Hall is going to swing on 8th October!

Please support these events and help raise vital funds for the windmill restoration.

In the photograph, which was taken next to the mill, are trustee Derek Greenwood (in whose garden the mill sits), PCSO Matthew Boyle, PCSO Matthew Neve, and Jenny Beaupain (Chair of the Friends of Argos Hill Windmill).

Big band evening with supper. 7:30pm at the Memorial Hall, Mayfield. Music provided by the Jon Hamilton Big Band. Ticket admission only - £15 each (no tickets on the door). Contact Jenny on (01892) 853161 for details.

Please support this event and help raise vital funds for the windmill restoration.

It was in a dangerous state, so has been removed for safety reasons. All parts have been retained, to aid with the future restoration of the fantail.

- Sunday 4th September: "Walk for the Windmill". A sponsored walk in aid of the windmill restoration, organised by the Mayfield Scouts and Guides. The walk will start at the Scout and Guide Headquarters in Mayfield at 10am and will finish with a barbeque at 1pm. The route is approximately 8 miles for adults and 3 miles for children, taking in the beautiful Wadhurst deer park. Pick up a sponsorship form at Mayfield Post Office.

- Friday 30th September: Argos Hill Windmill talk for the Mayfield Local History Society. Philip Hicks and Richard Howes will give a talk on the history of Argos Hill Windmill, it's current state and future plans. 8PM at Mayfield Memorial Hall. It is an open evening so all welcome.

- Saturday 8th October: Big band evening with supper - a fundraising event for Argos Hill Windmill. 7:30pm at the Memorial Hall, Mayfield. Music provided by the Jon Hamilton Big Band. Ticket admission only - £15 each (no tickets on the door). Contact Jenny on (01892) 853161 for details.

Daphne Todd OBE

Daphne Todd, the well known Portrait Painter, lives locally and is currently an Ambassador for East Sussex. Daphne recently hit the headlines when she beat over 2000 entrants world-wide to win the prestigious £25,000 BP Portrait Award 2010 at the National Portrait Gallery.

Daphne will be exhibiting two portraits in the window of the Mayfield Gallery during March, a wonderful opportunity to see for yourself two splendid examples of her recent work.

Daphne has been the Treasurer of the Friends of Argos Hill Windmill since 2007 and is a great supporter of the project to renovate the mill in phases to full working order over the next few years.

Daphne has very kindly offered to paint a portrait in oils for half her usual fee and give the proceeds to the Argos Hill Windmill Trust. This is a wonderful opportunity to both commission a family heirloom from an artist at the top of her form and to help our much-loved windmill which has been covered by ugly hording.

On March 3rd at 11am Daphne will be at the Mayfield Gallery herself. Full details of her offer can be seen at the Mayfield Gallery during the month of March.

Daphne can be contacted via the website or a message can be left with a Friend of Argos Hill Windmill - 01892 853161

Now that the lease has been signed, we are launching a fundraising campaign to fund the first stages of the mill's restoration.

Chairman of the Argos Hill Windmill Trust, Geoff Daughtrey, said: "This year will be make or break for the mill. We are launching a high-profile fundraising campaign with a target of £100K in 2011. This will enable us to shore up the mill with a temporary steel framework, while the main structural timbers can be repaired or replaced. This is the first phase of an ambitious five year plan."

For more details please see the official press release.

If you are able to help with the mill's restoration then please Contact Us.

To make a donation, please send a cheque made payable to "Argos Hill Windmill Trust Ltd" to:

Geoff Daughtrey, Argos Hill Windmill Trust Limited, 14-16 Mount Ephraim Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. TN1 1EE.

"Wealden warmly welcomes the formation of the Argos Hill Windmill Trust. District Councils are called on today to carry out a vast range of duties. The restoration of such a magnificent wooden post mill is much better in the hands of determined local enthusiasts, and we will be supporting the Trust and its fundraising."

Do you have any postcards, photos or video footage of the mill? If so, we'd love to hear from you.

Click on the image to see a larger version.

In a Kent & Sussex Courier newspaper article on 1st October, our chairman Geoff Daughtrey said "The trust has been set up, and we are hoping to take a lease of the mill very shortly. We will then be looking to raise funds in unison with Wealden Council, who are making funds available."

The earlier photos were taken by Benn's grandfather, George Benn White, whose sister, Mary Olive White lived at Argates House (now Post Mill House), just down the road from the mill.

The paper quoted our chairman, Geoff Daughtrey, saying "The future is looking much brighter. This windmill is a local icon and is steeped in history. You can see it for miles around, it is a real landmark. I'm hoping to get a lot of local support to help."

Wealden District Council's director of corporate services, Nigel Hannam, also commented: "The council is very pleased with the progress being made in the setting up of a trust to preserve the Argos Hill windmill and continues to support its formation. We believe a charitable trust offers the most secure future for the protection of this local landmark in the current financial climate."