The Old Windmill on Wickham Terrace was commissioned to grind local corn and wheat to feed an increasingly self-sufficient penal colony. The Museum of Brisbane says that, despite its prime hilltop location, the structure was poorly positioned and failed to catch the breeze. The Queensland Museum blog says the sails did not work well, so a treadmill was installed. Its later uses ranged from a signal station to an early television demonstration.
Why a windmill for a penal colony
The Queensland Museum blog opens by noting that Turrbal and Jagera people have lived on this land longer than 6000 years, caring for Country. The Museum of Brisbane says the windmill was built in 1828 and that the structure was poorly positioned and failed to catch the breeze.
Convict labour on the treadmill
The Museum of Brisbane says as many as 25 convicts worked the treadmill for up to 14 hours at a time. The Queensland Museum blog says convicts were forced to run the treadmill as a punishment. It also says the wheel caused frequent accidents, often broke down, and was struck by lightning in 1836.
The 1841 execution and the end of the treadmill
The Museum of Brisbane records that the windmill was the scene of a public execution of two Indigenous men, Mullan and Ningavil, in 1841. The Museum of Brisbane says the choice of The Windmill for the execution was deliberate, and that the execution was meant to dissuade the Aboriginal population from further aggression. By October 1849 the treadmill and gallows had been removed from the structure.
From signal station to museum
The Queensland Museum blog says the mill was stripped of its machinery and converted to a signal station, alerting Brisbane to the arrival of ships. The Museum of Brisbane says the floor installed at the top of the tower gave the windmill a double purpose as an observatory point. It also says the tower was operating as a signal station in 1855, which involved significant renovations to its interior. A few years later the newly founded Queensland Museum took up residence at the top of the tower. The Museum of Brisbane says the museum occupied that space for six years, until 1868. The Queensland Museum blog says a caretaker lived in a cottage on the site from 1881.
Radio, television and the 1990 excavation
The Museum of Brisbane says the Queensland Institute of Radio Engineers began research on wireless radio technology in the tower, and that a wireless radio station was installed there in 1926. The same museum says a demonstration in the windmill in 1934 was declared Queensland’s first television broadcast. In 1990 Brisbane City Council and the University of Queensland’s Archaeological Service Unit conducted a survey and excavation within the grounds of the mill. The Queensland Museum blog says the excavation unearthed a large amount of archaeological material. It also says that dating was difficult, because the material had become quite mixed underground.
Heritage status and visitors today
As at 9 November 2026, the Museum of Brisbane page describes the windmill as on the Queensland Heritage Register. The same page says the windmill is an iconic fixture that attracts thousands of tourists every year, and that statement is attributed to that page as at the same date. The museum also records that the Moreton Bay Courier declared the windmill the best fixed point for land measurement in the district.
The Queensland Museum blog describes the mill as the oldest building standing in Queensland, and this guide attributes that description to the blog rather than adopting it. The mill has been continuously occupied since the convict period, according to the same blog.
Frequently asked questions
When was the Old Windmill on Wickham Terrace built?
The Museum of Brisbane says it was built in 1828 to grind corn and wheat for a penal colony.
Why did the windmill use a treadmill?
The Queensland Museum blog says the sails did not work well, so a treadmill was installed, and convicts worked it.
Is the Old Windmill on the Queensland Heritage Register?
As at 9 November 2026, the Museum of Brisbane page says it is.
