Judah Baker Windmill, Historic windmill in South Yarmouth, Massachusetts.

The Judah Baker Windmill is a wooden structure in Massachusetts shaped like a cone on top, with a roof that can turn to catch the wind. Inside you will find the original machinery and grinding stones that people used to process grain into flour.

Judah Baker built the mill at Grand Cove in North Dennis in 1791 to grind corn. It was sold to Captain Freeman Crowell and moved to East Dennis, then moved to South Yarmouth in 1886 by Captain Braddock Matthews. Seth Baker bought it in 1875 and ran it until his death in 1891; his son Joseph sold it in 1893 to William Stone, and the mill stopped operating. A 1916 storm damaged it, and Charles Henry Davis moved it down the street to its present site.

The windmill demonstrates how local communities relied on wind power to grind grain and process food for daily use. Walking inside, you can see the space where people worked and understand their connection to this everyday technology.

The mill stands at 89 River Street in South Yarmouth's historic district, facing west toward Bass River and Nantucket Sound, beside a small boardwalk and beach. Volunteers and the Town of Yarmouth manage it, and tours are given seasonally rather than year-round.

What makes this mill special is that it still has the original grinding stones and mechanical parts from when it was first built over two centuries ago. The rotating roof cap lets the entire top section turn to chase the wind and work efficiently.