The Truman Windmill

George Edward TRUMAN (born c1867) was a blacksmith in Mt Gambier, South Australia in circa 1899. He was a member of the Mt Gambier Town Council in c1903 and was later the Mayor of Mt Gambier in 1918-1919.
The unique Truman Windmill was a large open direct crank drive windmill designed to fit on a wooden tower. The wind wheel had tube spokes at the rear and rod at the front. The steel blades were between the two rings. Both the tail arm and vane braces were wooden.
The Truman windmill was later manufactured by a Mr WILLIAMS, another blacksmith of Mt Gambier. It is not known if he had a separate business or if he had taken over the business from George TRUMAN. WILLIAMS's business was sold to T. H. VARCOE in 1911.
The Truman windmill pictured above was restored in 1985 by Mr Arch McArthur and members of the Millicent Branch of the National Trust of South Australia. The head was very old and nothing was left of the stand. As it was not possible to obtain details of the original stand, another simple stand was designed and built.
Photographed at the Millicent National Trust Museum, Millicent, South Australia in August 2002 by B. G. Hewitson.
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