In South Dakota, during the homesteading and settlement years, water wasn’t readily available on the surface, but the wind provided steady energy. The wind would be harnessed to pump subterranean water to the surface. Windmills cropped up across the country. To keep the rotor (blades) of the windmills facing into the wind and stabilized, windmill weights were added to the opposite side of the head. Today’s What’s New Wednesday celebrates the useful folk art of windmill weights. Produced in Beatrice, Nebraska, this bob-tailed horse weighs about 13 lbs. It was manufactured by the Dempster Mill Manufacturing Company and would have been attached to a cast iron weight box cover. It is about 16 5/8 inches tall by 17 ¼ inches wide. There were many different designs and varying bulks to windmill weights based on the size of the rotor. Some of the popular designs include horses, cattle, chickens and letters. The windmill weights now fetch a fairly handsome price if they are in good condition. They are wonderful throwbacks to beautiful folk art that were useful and helped to catch the wind.
SDAHM donated by Hugh Watt 1989:154:014