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Flowerdew Hundred Windmill/Watermill

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description Flowerdew Hundred Windmill/Watermill Overview

Flowerdew Hundred is a historic plantation site located on the south bank of the James River in Virginia, notable for its significant early 17th-century archaeological remains. It was the location of some of the first English watermills constructed in the Americas, which were used for grinding grain and lumbering by the early colonists. The site underwent extensive archaeological excavations in the 1970s and 1980s, uncovering thousands of artifacts related to early colonial settlement and Indigenous habitation.

help Flowerdew Hundred Windmill/Watermill FAQ

Where is Flowerdew Hundred located?

Flowerdew Hundred sits on the south bank of the James River in Prince George County, Virginia. The property was granted to Governor George Yeardley in 1618 and became one of the early English settlements in Virginia.

Was the Flowerdew Hundred windmill really the first in North America?

Virginia's Department of Historic Resources calls Yeardley's windmill the first documented windmill in North America, built around 1621 at Windmill Point. The windmill visible today is a commemorative replica built in the 1970s.

Did Flowerdew Hundred also have a watermill?

A 1621 Virginia Company record says the treasurer was about erecting a watermill while Yeardley had already built the windmill. That is evidence of an early watermill project or plan, not proof that an original watermill still survives at the site.

What were the Flowerdew Hundred mills used for?

Colonial windmills and watermills were built to process grain, especially corn, using wind or flowing water as the power source. Archaeological work at Flowerdew Hundred from 1971 to 1995 documented extensive early-17th-century remains around the plantation.

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