Hayes Farm and Windmill Sully

Anyone who has travelled along Hayes Road near Sully has probably noticed the castle-like ruin of Hayes Farm windmill. The overgrown-yet well-preserved shell of the windmill and a number of its associated buildings serve as a quaint reminder of a time and a community that existed long before the construction of Barry Docks and the urban expansion of the town of Barry in the late nineteenth century.

(The ruins of Hayes Farm windmill)

Hayes Farm is located on the outskirts of the parish of Sully some way away from the village centre. The area surrounding Hayes Farm was a lonely one in times gone by and would have looked quite different before the advent of the docks. On the south side of Hayes Farm were a series of enclosed fields that stretched towards the coast and extended down the coastline towards the land’s extremity at the Black Rocks. Almost immediately behind the windmill complex were the moorlands of Sully Moor which two hundred years ago extended to the coast at Barry Sound. Barry Island and the Bristol Channel would also have been visible during this time.

    (Photograph taken in 1884/5 during the construction of the Eastern Cofferdam showing Barry Sound and the coastline surrounding Hayes Farm before the construction of the docks: Picture source Barry Library)

(Water colour painting of Sully Moors by Thomas Frederick Worrall C 1914) 

Hayes Farm was established towards the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1812. Evan Thomas (1778-1832) of Llwynmadog Estate in Breconshire purchased the manor of Sully and amalgamated seven small farms within the parish with a vison of creating two new model farms which would utilize the latest agricultural innovations. One of these farms was located on the summit of the hill near Cog Moor, the appropriately named Cog Farm. The other was located on the outskirts of Sully-this was Hayes Farm. Both Cog and Hayes farms sported a windmill which was quite unusual at the time, although windmills were not unknown within Glamorgan. A variety of agricultural buildings were also constructed at Hayes Farm as well as two rows of cottages to house the farm workers. 

(View of Sully from Cog Road during the 1940's with the land at Hayes Farm visible in the distance)

Evan’s endeavors appear to have been regarded as a success. The Samuel Lewis Topographical Dictionary of 1833 states that:

‘The Scottish system of agriculture, introduced here by Mr. Thomas of Sully House, who is regarded as one of the best agriculturalists in South Wales, is generally adopted in the parish, and has succeeded well’.  

The windmill at Hayes Farm was used for the grinding of corn after harvest and was of the ‘revolving-cap’ variety. The windmill was initially powered by sails but was later adapted to be powered by horse. An oil engine was installed in 1902.

After Evan Thomas died in 1832 the Sully estate was sold to industrialist Sir Josiah John Guest in 1838. The Sully estate was to stay with Sir John’s descendants until it was sold in 1917 to Lieutenant-Commander Charles E Evans.

In 1835 John Spickett leased Hayes Farm as well as another farm in Sully. John Spickett’s tenure came to an end in 1849 when he decided to retire. John sold off all of his farming assets in the same year which included 427 sheep, nine cows, one bull, five oxen and 10 cart horses as well as all of his farming equipment.

During the 1860’s one Walter Evans resided at Hayes Farm. Walter was to be succeeded by a Mr Morgan as tenant during the 1870’s. In the year 1880 Mr. William Thomas took up the tenancy of Hayes Farm. William’s father, Mr. Thomas Thomas who had lived at St Hillary near Cowbridge until his death in 1879 was a noted breeder of cattle. William was to carry on in his father’s footsteps at Hayes Farm.  

(Hayes Farm during the early twentieth century: picture source Barry Library)

William frequently entered agricultural contests throughout Glamorgan and beyond-and frequently won prizes for his efforts. In fact, it was estimated that William won near one thousand prizes during his lifetime. For example, in 1889 William won first and second prizes for the best three long-wool fat Cotswold lambs at the Cardiff Fat Cattle Show netting himself the handsome sum of five- pounds. In 1889 William also took the silver-cup for ‘Best Beast’ at an exhibition of fat-stock held in Bridgend. Such was William’s expertise on cattle that he was appointed a judge at the 1896 Royal Agricultural Show held at Leicester and acted as judge at many other such contests.

As well as being lauded throughout Glamorgan and beyond for his agricultural expertise and achievements, William was also well regarded within the local vicinity as a modest, affable and community minded individual who often utilized his land for the benefit of the local community. For example, William frequently allowed typical country pursuits on his land such as coursing and shooting. William also permitted members of the local community to hold gatherings, outings, fetes, meetings for societies and festivals in his fields. William went so far as to hold garden parties for the people of Sully at his own expense and was generally only too keen to help the local community in any way that he could.

Of the farm workers who worked at Hayes Farm, their names occasionally crop up in records. For example, Edward Harrie and William Stoddard are recorded as millers from 1821-28. Sadly, however for most of the farm workers the only notable occurrence to happen to them during their obscure lives was their deaths-several of which because of their tragic nature were recorded within the local periodicals.

(Photograph of the now demolished rows of workers cottages at Hayes Farm C 1914)

In 1897 it was recorded in the Barry Dock News ‘the sad fate’ of one Norah Dempsey, an elderly widow aged 76 who was found ‘by a farm lad named Baker’ drowned in one of the waterways which ran through Sully Moors near to the site of the windmill. Norah had lived in one of the cottages on Hayes Road and had worked the land surrounding the farm her whole life. In 1901 it was recorded that William Denbury, a cowman to Mr. W. Thomas of Hayes Farm aged 55, suddenly ‘fell dead’ on Hayes Road during a raging storm. William however was not a run of the mill farm laborer but was in charge of his employer's prized beast at agricultural shows-thus, William was ‘well known amongst farmers and breeders of livestock’. It was recorded that William left a widow and child.

Poaching it seems was a universal problem faced by all landowners during past times. Hayes Farm was no exception. In 1892 one James Harrison Brown, a noted poacher, was arrested for poaching on William Thomas’s land, having been observed for some time by Mr. Thomas before being apprehended. The problem of poaching was considered to be so endemic that hares apparently became very scare at Hayes Farm. Theft of agricultural produce was also a problem it seems. In 1905 a number of Cadoxton youths were caught stealing turnips from Hayes farm and were given a choice of a fine of five shillings each or seven days imprisonment.

The land around Hayes Farm began to change rapidly with the advent of the docks. In 1894 81 acres of land at Hayes Farm near the Bendricks and Black Rock was compulsory purchased by Barry Dock and Railway Company. In 1899 smelting works were constructed nearby and in 1901 a dry-dock was built upon Sully Moor. Before the turn of the century the road leading to Hayes Farm was little more than a dirt track being described in 1900 as being in a ‘disgraceful state’. This road was metaled in around 1903 to cope with the increasing traffic.

(Despite the encroachment of the docks Hayes Farm, shown on this drawing dated 1901, is still largely undeveloped)

During this time of change and construction an interesting discovery was made on Sully Moors on land belonging to Hayes Farm. In 1899 labourers digging a trench accidentally discovered a cache of Roman gold and silver coins as well as a number of gold finger rings in what was later ascertained by archaeologist John Storrie to have been the site of a burial. Most of these coins and rings were purchased from the finders by John Storrie although a number were not recovered. The site of the burial and hoard is now under the Dow Corning plant.

(One of the late Roman period coins from the Sully hoard from the National Museum of Wales collection)

In 1909 William’s wife Isabella Thomas died at Hayes Farm aged 58 years after a short illness. William was soon to follow and died in 1911.

In the years after William’s death the land surrounding Hayes Farm was further developed piecemeal. Sully Hospital was built nearby in the 1930’s; this building is now regarded as a much-celebrated example of Art Deco architecture and is listed. During World War Two a military supply depot was constructed at the Bendricks. During this time more interesting archaeological discoveries were made. A number of lead coffins sporting scalloped shell decoration were discovered during construction as well as a number of glass urns containing cremation burials. The workers however had little idea of the importance of their discovery and subsequently sold the lead for scrap. These discoveries are considered to have formed a part of a larger cemetery of late Roman/early medieval date, which are of great rarity in Wales.

(Early twentieth century view of Barry Docks with Hayes Farm in the distance)

American soldiers were based near Hayes Farm during WW2 before they were sent to France in 1944 to partake in Operation Overlord. No doubt many lost their lives during the brief but bloody landings at Normandy.

(American soldiers stationed near to Hayes Farm during WWII. The windmill at Hayes Farm is visible in the background; picture source Barry Library)

During the early 1950’s the Midland Silicones chemical plant, now the Dow Chemical Plant, was built on land to the rear of the windmill. This event sounded the final death knell for Hayes Farm-its windmill fell into disuse and what was left of its land rented to other farmers in the Sully area.

The ruins of Hayes Farm windmill and its outbuildings are now Grade II listed structures, with the windmill being noted as the only windmill in Wales to contain surviving machinery. The farmhouse at Hayes Farm is now a private residence and animal hostel.

©Jonathan and Mark Lambert 2020

The right of Jonathan and Mark Lambert to be identified as Authors of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reprinted, reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic means, including social media, or mechanical, or by any other means including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the authors.