The Windmills (T&F)

There are five known windmills on Sodor: the Post Windmill, the Tower Windmill, the Sodor Grain Windmill, Toby's Windmill and one nearby Ruth's Workshop. Four of the five windmills grind wheat grown on Sodor into flour for use in making bread for the residents of nearby villages and one was converted into an electro-magnet generator to power the workshop and gate.

Post Windmill
The Post Windmill is a windmill with a railway line running past and marshes beside it. It was featured in the opening credits used from the first to seventh series.

Despite being on Toby's Branch Line, the windmill's usage in the opening credits made it an iconic part of the franchise, particularly with Japanese audiences, and thus the iconic imagery was encouraged. As a result, there have been one-off occasions where the model appears in places other than Toby's Branch Line, such as immediately adjacent to Thomas' Branch Line before Crowe's Farm Crossing in Ghost Train and on the main line in Time for Trouble.

Appearances
Television Series= {{Scroll box|

Thomas & Friends

 * Series 1 - Thomas and the Guard, Thomas and Bertie and Toby and the Stout Gentleman
 * Series 2 - Thomas Comes to Breakfast and Ghost Train
 * Series 3 - Thomas and Percy's Christmas Adventure
 * Series 5 - Snow

Specials

 * 1991 - Thomas and the U.K. Trip

Music Videos

 * Series 4 - Toby, Don't Judge a Book By its Cover and The Island Song
 * Series 5 - It's Great to be an Engine and The Snow Song
 * Series 6 - Winter Wonderland and Boo! Boo! Choo-Choo

Video Games
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 * 2000 - Trouble on the Tracks
 * -|Other Media=

Magazine Stories

 * 1988 - Toby and the Stout Gentleman
 * 1989 - Edward and the Miller, Thomas and the Campers and Thomas and the Old Man
 * 2003 - Henry's Dizzy Day

Trivia

 * In the third series, the ladder leading into the Rotation Arm is removed and the ladder is changed to handrail steps
 * A scene from the first series episode, Thomas and Bertie, featuring the Post Windmill, was used in the opening credits for the first five series and the seventh series. A deleted scene from Thomas and Percy's Christmas Adventure also featuring the Post Windmill was used for the sixth series instead.
 * This Windmill is similar to Brill windmill in Brill, Buckinghamshire.
 * The base of the windmill is owned by Twitter user, TomsProps.
 * The 2014 television series map of the Island of Sodor incorrectly notes the windmill as being on Thomas' Branch Line between Crowe's Farm Crossing and Dryaw station (likely based on the usage of the model in Ghost Train), despite the show depicting otherwise. The windmill on Thomas' branch line from that point onwards appears to instead be the Tower Windmill.

Merchandise

 * ERTL
 * Brio
 * Wooden Railway
 * Motor Road and Rail
 * Capsule Plarail
 * Tomix
 * Lionel Trains
 * Mini Mini Plarail
 * Thomas Town
 * Pocket Fantasy
 * Waku Waku
 * Diablock

Tower Windmill
The Tower Windmill first appeared in the fifth series and appeared in almost every series afterwards. Between the fifth and sixth series, its original sails - more similar to those of the Post Mill - were replaced by the set which it carries today. The Tower Mill was featured in the opening credits from the eighth to the eighteenth series.

Upon being introduced, the Tower Mill's placement was not specified in the show, but almost every depiction of the Island of Sodor featuring it between the eighth and sixteenth series specifies it to be on the Main Line in the open space between Balladrine and Kellaby.

From the nineteenth series and Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure onwards, the Tower Mill is depicted as being near Farmer Trotter's Pig Farm and Maithwaite on Thomas' Branch Line for the remainder of its appearances in the series.

Appearances
Television Series= {{Scroll box|

Thomas & Friends

 * Series 5 - Bye George!, Stepney Gets Lost and Thomas and the Rumours
 * Series 6 - It's Only Snow, Twin Trouble, James and the Red Balloon, Percy's Chocolate Crunch, Thomas, Percy and the Squeak and Edward the Very Useful Engine
 * Series 7 - Emily's New Coaches, Percy Gets it Right, Edward's Brass Band, James and the Queen of Sodor, The Spotless Record and Three Cheers for Thomas
 * Jack and the Sodor Construction Company - A Visit from Thomas
 * Series 8 - Thomas and the Tuba, Thomas and the Circus, Chickens to School and Percy and the Magic Carpet
 * Series 9 - Percy and the Oil Painting
 * Series 10 - Thomas and the Jet Plane, Topped Off Thomas and Emily and the Special Coaches
 * Series 11 - Thomas and the Storyteller, Thomas and the Lighthouse, Don't be Silly, Billy, Edward and the Mail, Thomas in Trouble and Percy and the Left Luggage
 * Series 12 - Steady Eddie, Rosie's Funfair Special and Percy and the Bandstand
 * Series 13 - The Lion of Sodor and The Early Bird
 * Series 15 - Gordon and Ferdinand and Edward the Hero
 * Series 16 - Percy and the Monster of Brendam
 * Series 19 - Very Important Sheep, Thomas the Babysitter and The Other Side of the Mountain
 * Series 20 - The Railcar and the Coaches
 * Series 21 - Unscheduled Stops
 * Series 22 - Forever and Ever and The Case of the Puzzling Parts

Specials

 * 2005 - Calling All Engines!
 * 2008 - The Great Discovery
 * 2015 - Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure
 * 2016 - The Great Race
 * 2017 - Journey Beyond Sodor

Learning Segments

 * Series 9 - Changing Sounds, Getting to Bluff's Cove, Where Can Neville Find Salty?, Cool Down Delivery and What does Toby see?
 * Series 10 - Which Engine Should go to Which Building? and Which Load for Rosie?

Videos

 * 2015 - DC Super Friends™ Minis Mash Ups Origin Story!
 * 2016 - Thomas & Friends in 4-D: Bubbling Boilers}}

Trivia

 * The track layout changed in the seventh and eighth series.
 * The bridge next to the windmill was removed in the eighth series.
 * The model of the Tower Mill is currently on display at Drayton Manor.
 * The ruined Tower Mill was originally going to appear in the aftermath of the storm in the 2005 special, Calling All Engines! but it was changed to the Sodor Suspension Bridge.
 * The model of the Tower Mill is frequently used in promotional photos.
 * This Windmill is similar to Stembridge Tower Mill in High Ham.

Merchandise

 * Wooden Railway
 * Plarail
 * TrackMaster
 * Hornby
 * Bachmann
 * Lionel Trains

Sodor Grain Windmill
The Grain Windmill is located between Killaban and Cabalnoo near the Hawin Russagh.

Mr. Conductor landed on some sacks lying near the windmill after an encounter with Diesel 10 and it was here that he found a subliminal message about Lady and met up with Junior and Lily. Junior, seeing the windmill as a joyride, decided to ride on the sails on the windmill, but this resulted in him being flung up several feet in the air when the wind got too strong and ended up being thrown onto Diesel 10's roof.

Appearances
Television Series=

Specials

 * 2000 - Thomas and the Magic Railroad

Merchandise

 * Thomas Town

Toby's Windmill
Toby's Windmill is a wooden-bodied windmill is located near the junction for The Castle and the Old Mine on Toby's Branch Line.

The windmill was once struck by lightning during a fierce storm and was in jeopardy of closing down. After Toby found an old tree that had collapsed during the storm, the wood from the tree was used to rebuild the windmill and it has been in business ever since.

Appearance
Television Series=

Thomas & Friends

 * Series 7 - Toby's Windmill

Merchandise

 * Wooden Railway
 * TrackMaster
 * Mega Bloks
 * Motorized Railway
 * TrackMaster Push Along

The Main Line Windmill
This windmill is only seen in Gordon's "Meet the Steam Team" video, in which Gordon races by it with the express after leaving Knapford and before charging up Gordon's Hill.

According to the 2014 map by Sam Wilkinson, there is an otherwise-unspecified windmill in between Elsbridge and Elizabeth's Shed, giving a potential location for this windmill. However, it could just as easily be referring to the windmill by Ruth's Workshop.

Appearances
Television Series=

Videos

 * 2019 - Meet Gordon

Trivia

 * The windmill itself is actually an edited version of the Tower Windmill with the side building removed.