Blennerville Windmill

Coordinates: 52°15′24″N 9°44′15″W / 52.256745°N 9.737438°W / 52.256745; -9.737438

Blennerville Windmill

Blennerville Windmill is a tower mill in Blennerville, Co. Kerry and the tallest of its kind in Europe at 21.3 metres high. Blennerville Windmill was built by Sir Rowland Blennerhassett in 1800 whom the village of Blennerville is named after. The windmill was used for grinding corn for both the local population and for export to Britain. However, by the mid-late 19th century due to the introduction of steam power, the silting of the river channel at Blennerville, the opening of the Tralee Ship Canal in 1846, and the building of Fenit Harbour in 1880; the windmill fell into ruins. In 1981 Tralee Urban District Council purchased the windmill with work beginning on restoring it in June 1984 before being completed and opened by An Taoiseach Charles Haughey in 1990. It is now impressively restored and open to the public with a visitors centre comprising a craft centre, exhibition gallery, audio-visual presentation and restaurant. There is a guided tour of the five-storey windmill detailing the grain milling process. Blennerville Windmill is now Ireland´s only commercially operated windmill in existence.

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