Category: events
2024 Event days confirmed
Sun 28th April: American Cars
Sat/Sun 11th-12th May: National Mills Weekend
Sun 19th May: Vintage Tractors
Sun 9th June: American & Classic Cars & Trucks (Coffee n Cars)
Sun 23rd June: Classic Bikes
Sun 7th July: American & Classic Cars & Trucks (Coffee n Cars)
Sun 1st Sept: Vintage Tractors
Sun 15th Sept: Classic Bikes
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Tractor Day Great Success
On the first day of September, a beautiful dry day brought a host of tractors and a stream of visitors to see them.
While several tractors were completely restored, some were in their original state. On display was a wide variety of makers, plus a gleaming steam engine and an assortment of stationary engines, all in steam. A great favourite for the children was a working scale model steam engine with a trailer behind.
The winner of the Tractor Day certificate for the Best Tractor of the Day was Dave Watson with his Fordson Super Major (see below). Also pictured are John Allsopp on the left presenting the certificate with a trophy being presented by Joe Hancock (in the middle).
The little boys enjoying the day are Thomas (left) and Reuben on a Grey Fergie – tractor drivers of the future, perhaps.
All photographs are by Anthony Sharp.
There was enough wind to turn the sails of the 222-year-old windmill and a large number of people enjoyed guided tours and learned how her machinery produced flour. Event organiser Lynn Allen said ‘It’s been a great day and thank you to the exhibitors for coming and supporting the Mill – we are always glad to welcome them to Heage.’
There was a hot food van on site plus the ever popular Bric-Brac stall. All profits from the day will go to the upkeep and maintenance of the windmill.
Italian Cars Visit
In spite of other attractions last Sunday, like a certain Cricket World Cup Final, visitors thronged to see a collection of varied Italian cars on display at Heage Windmill.
Some 45 cars on display included Fiats, Alfa Romeos, Abarths, Ferraris, and Lancias. One car that drew the eye was a rare red 1972 ‘Justino’ made by Ferrari, which had raced at Le Mans.
Awards were made for the Best in Show along with the Best Abarth model.
A great day was enjoyed by all and we hope to see the Italian cars again next year.
Floral, Choral and Car Displays make up a memorable weekend
Floral displays, choral singing and a ‘triumphant’ array of cars made the last weekend of June a memorable one at Heage Windmill.
This particular weekend sees the traditional flower festival at neighbouring St Luke’s church which the Friends of the mill continue to support by decorating not only one of the church windows but also the interior of the windmill.
All types of containers were brought into use and there were floral displays all over the windmill. They were much appreciated by our visitors and amongst the comments was: ‘A perfect match of containers and flowers for a windmill – Royal Horticultural Society watch out!’
Saturday also saw the Derventio Choir from Derby give a musical concert, entertaining us with a wide variety of songs, ranging from folk tunes to big show songs. They were much appreciated by all present.
To round off an excellent weekend we had a visit from the Derwent Valley Triumph Sports Six club which was celebrating its 25th anniversary.
They brought almost 50 cars of assorted Triumph models over the years, with a range of colours sufficient to match the flowers!
Several awards were made with the club presenting the ‘Best in Show’ trophy to the Triumph Renown (made 1949 to 1954), a ‘big brother’ to the Mayflower model. These cars were much enjoyed by all the people on site.
‘Best Bike Day Ever’ say Volunteers
Over 100 classic motor bikes made Heage Windmill their destination on a bright sunshine Sunday.
The crowds flocked in to view and touch these lovely, often gleaming, machines, ranging from tourers to out and out racers, with many well known makes, such as BSA , Honda, Royal Enfield, Triumph and Kowasaki.
The winner of the ‘Bike of the Day’ was judged to be a Kawasaki A1 Samurai 250. The proud owner, John Pridmore (pictured right), was presented with the ‘Dave Cleaver Memorial Trophy’ and a ‘Best Bike’ certificate by Colin Clemens, who organises the bikes coming to the mill.
The fact that it was also National Mills Day brought in other visitors and, to add to the interest, the Nuffield Amateur Radio club set up a mobile transmitter. They were able to make some worldwide contacts but also contacted many other mills in the UK where similar temporary stations were set up, all marking Mills Day.
It was a truly memorable day, judged by long standing members of the Friends of Heage Windmill to be ‘the best ever’.
Our thanks go out to everyone who helped make the day such a success.
Tractor Man opens Windmill
In recognition of bringing Tractor Days to Heage Windmill, John Allsop was invited to officially open the mill for our 2019 season.
In what was probably the warmest opening day since the windmill was restored in 2002, John made his entrance in fitting fashion by driving his Fordson Tractor down the track to the windmill, escorted by two other tractors, driven by local men David Hornsey and John Gould.
They were welcomed by a large gathering of people , including Alan Eccleston, Chairman of Heage Windmill Society, and Cllr. Angela Ward, Chair of Friends of the Windmill.
Alan welcomed everyone present and thanked in particular the team of volunteers who make the mill such a great attraction.
He introduced John Allsop, who was born and bred in Heage and has had a long standing love of the mill. It was John who, many years ago, suggested he organised a tractor rally at the mill. This has blossomed into memorable and well-supported Tractor Days which have greatly helped support the mill.
Angela spoke on behalf of Friends and mentioned the continuing need for more volunteers to help maintain the high standards set at the mill.
Alan then invited John to cut the yellow ribbon. In doing so doing, he said he sincerely hoped the mill would enjoy a great season and that that weather would be kind throughout.
Morgan Cars Visit
It was a cool, but a mostly sunny day, with just enough wind to gently turn the windmill sails, when the first organised visit by Morgan Sports Cars club arrived at Heage Windmill on Sunday April 14th.
Some 30 cars, in a wide variety of colours and models, were displayed on the apron in front of the working windmill and were much admired by the many visitors to the site.
We learnt that Morgan cars were founded in 1909, and have since achieved fame throughout the world due to their unique blend of charisma, craftsmanship and performance and it was easy to see why they were so well loved by their enthusiastic owners.
The Morgan Motor Company, based in Malvern, has evolved over 100 years into a true icon, a darling of the automotive industry and a brand synonymous with unrivalled excitement. The cars displayed true British craftsmanship and their owners are justly proud of their vehicles, regardless of their age.
Tractor Day – this Sunday, Sept 1st
This Sunday, Heage Windmill will again be visited by a large collection of vintage Tractors.
These machines displaced the horse as the motive power for farms and similar activities and now they are themselves being regarded as ‘collectables’. They will stand displayed adjacent to our 222-year-old wind machine!
Tractors will include 60-year-old Fordsons and Massey Fergusons. John Allsop, who organises the Tractor group, said: ‘We are always happy to come to the windmill’.
The tractors will be supported by some stalls, including a burger van and, if the weather permits, our now quite famous bric-a-brac stall, where one person’s junk becomes someone else’s treasure!
The tractors will arrive from about 10-30 am and will be with us until around 3-30. The mill will, of course, be open for guided tours.
All funds raised will go to the upkeep of the Mill.
Santa Day – Great Success
Sunday 2nd December dawned cloudy and a bit damp, but mostly dry and mild. This was important because Santa Claus was coming to Heage Windmill and duly arrived at 11.00 am on a motorised sledge, (kindly loaned by Amber Valley Rotary Club) to be greeted by a crowd of happy and excited youngsters.
Helped by the mill’s head Elf (Lynn Allen), Santa soon made himself comfortable in his grotto on the ground floor of the windmill.
The excited children were able to see Santa in turn (as result of a numbered ticket scheme which worked very well) and during his visit he saw over 130 children, each of whom received a specially
wrapped present from Santa. As he rested afterwards he said ‘They were the best set of children I have seen this year!’
During the day over 500 visitors came to the mill and enjoyed the entertainments and refreshments available in the nearby marquee, and in the mill undercroft.
To pass the time waiting to see Santa, there were various games to play, raffles and food, including a very popular hot food van providing a range of food to suit all tastes.
They were also entertained by members of the Notts and Derby Rock Choir , suitably bedecked in Santa hats, who sang many seasonal songs.
