St Monans Windmill

The stone tower of St Monans Windmill was built in the 18th century and played a vital role in moving seawater into the neighbouring salt pans as part of the St Philips Salt Works.

Salt has been a valuable commodity through the ages, dating back to the Romans paying their soldiers with the substance. This is where the word salary emerged from Salarium which is Latin for 'Salt Money'. Also the phrase 'Worth their weight in salt' comes from the same origins. So high was its value, that it was stored in bonded buildings and was smuggled as a way of avoiding paying duty.

It can be mined as Rock Salt, however a later technique of evaporating sea water in shallow ponds was used to produce Bay Salt. The Firth of Forth was a prime location for such a salt works as coal, seawater and wind were in abundance.

In 1771, Sir John Anstruther and his business partner (brother-in-law) Robert Fall, established the Newark Coal and Salt Company. An integral part of the salt business was to fill salt pans with seawater and this is where the windmill came in. The wind would turn the windmill sails, which in turn would operate a pump which moved the seawater from filled rock reservoirs into the salt pans.

In around 1773, the company started extracting coal from the land behind the windmill, known as Coal Farm. Some of the extracted coal was then used to fuel the fires under the salt pans which evaporated the water leaving the salt.

The Salt Works would have run 24x7, and employed 20 men at the windmill and saltpans with the coal mine employing a further 36.

The Salt Works fell out of operation on or before tax changes in 1823, which meant the industry was no longer viable in Scotland. The windmill fell into disrepair and ended up a mere stump.

In 1992, the windmill, or wind engine tower, underwent a reconstruction programme that included re-roofing, replacing the engine, installation of a new spiral stairway and upper viewing platform. Sadly, the windmill is no longer accessible, so we were unable to see all the hard work.

It now stands around 9m high, 4.5m in diameter with 1m thick sandstone and rubble walls, and from it's elevated position can be seen from miles around.

Once you have visited the windmill, head back down to the coastal path and take a look at the Salt Pans where you can find further details of Salt Works.

The windmill is easily reached by heading east along the coastal path from the car park.

St Monans Windmill is a Scheduled Monument with Historic Environment Scotland.