The scoop wheel is linked to the mill by a horizontal shaft and has a diameter of 7.3 metres (24 ft),[4] with long wooden paddles.

The paddles scooped water into a narrow brick-built culvert and released it to the higher level of the River Yare.

The windmill was built in 1865 for the Reedham Cement Company by the millwright firm of Stolworthy[4][5][6] on the site of a previous mill.

[7] It was initially used to grind cement clinker, using chalk from Whitlingham near Norwich and clay dredged from Oulton Broad or Breydon Water, both brought to the mill by wherry.

During the Summer of 2009 English Heritage, in partnership with a local boat touring company, re-opened the mill on a limited basis on a number of Mondays.