About George Green
George Green was 14 years old when his father built the windmill and for most of the rest of his life George worked in the windmill. But George Green was also a brilliant mathematician and physicist. He devised new ways of doing mathematics which he used to make many discoveries about such things as electricity, magnetism, light, sound and wave motion. His mathematics – still called Green’s Theorem and Green’s function – are used today by scientists and engineers all over the world working with computers, lasers, satellite communications. Research scientists trying to understand the gravitational field of the Earth and sub-atomic particles, for example, use his mathematics.
Remarkably George Green had only 14 months at school, leaving when he was only ten years old to work in his father’s bakery and later in the windmill. In 1828 this self-taught genius published his greatest scientific work where he devised a completely new way of using mathematics to understand electricity and magnetism. Five years later he became a student at Caius College in Cambridge; he was forty years old. After taking his degree in mathematics he became a Fellow of the college where he did more research and published more scientific papers. But his health failed and he returned to Nottingham, to his partner Jane Green and their seven children. He died in 1841 at the age of only 47 years. He is buried at St Stephen’s church, almost within the shadow of his windmill.
In 1993, the bicentenary of his birth, George Green achieved the honour he so richly deserved when a memorial plaque was dedicated in Westminster Abbey.
Read a more detailed account of George Green’s life (pdf).
Bromley House Library c.1880 (with the dormer windows in the roof) This was Green’s gateway to the academic world
Bromley House Library interior. A room in the library is dedicated to Green and his achievements
A page from George Green’s essay
The Gate of Honour at Cauis College, Cambridge, where Green took his degree in mathematics and then became a fellow
Green’s signature on a document relating to his work as a miller
Grave of George Green’s (and some of his family) in the churchyard of St Stephens, within the shadow of his windmill
Members of the British Association for the Advancement of Science laying flowers on Green’s grave in 1937
The new George Green Library of Science and Engineering at Nottingham University, one of the many honours Green has received posthumously
A Journey Through Time
The History of Green's Windmill
Originally built in the early 19th century, Green’s Windmill has is a notable landmark in Nottingham. After falling into disrepair, it was meticulously restored in the 1980s to its former glory and now operates as both a working windmill and a museum dedicated to the science of milling and the life of its original owner, scientist George Green. Today, visitors can explore the mill, learn about traditional milling techniques, and even purchase flour milled on-site.
Things to do at Green’s Windmill
Entry is free to the Mill and Museum!
Climb the windmill to see amazing views of Nottingham.
Experiment like a scientist, see our community garden and visit our shop.
Get involved and support us
There are lots of ways to get involved at Green’s Mill.
You can join us by becoming a member, volunteer with us in a range of roles or make a donation.