Wikipedia:Naming conventions (windmills)

This proposed naming convention concerns windmills and watermills. Many windmills have changed names over time or are known by multiple names. Many have changed names from when they were operational to their current use as museums. It is common for windmills in different locations to have shared the same name. This proposal seeks to disambiguate between similarly-named mills, preserve historic names and reflect current and common usage, based on published sources.

Windmills tend to be named in one of three ways:

1. PLACE Windmill e.g. Keston Windmill
2. NAME Mill e.g. Fowler's Mill
3. NAME Mill, PLACE e.g. Old Mill, Perth

The proposal for the naming of these articles on Wikipedia is as follows:

Scenario	Guideline	Convention	Example
Currently exists/open (unambiguous case)	Use common name used now by owner/operator	PLACE Windmill or NAME Mill	Upminster Windmill
Currently exists/open (ambiguous case)	Use last/current name of mill and location	NAME Mill, PLACE	Old Mill, Perth
No longer exists (unambiguous case)	Use last name when in operation	NAME Mill	Fowler's Mill
No longer exists (ambiguous case)	Use last name when in operation and location	NAME Mill, PLACE	Black Mill, Barham

Some other guidelines:

1. Mill, Windmill, Watermill etc. are capitalised in article names as they are proper nouns.
2. PLACE Windmill or PLACE Watermill should be avoided in most cases, unless it is the unambiguous, current and common name.
3. PLACE Mill (i.e. without specifying wind/water) should always be avoided.
4. Disambiguation pages are created at NAME Mill where multiple NAME Mill, PLACE articles exist (such as Old Mill).
5. PLACE Windmill or PLACE Watermill may be used as disambiguation pages if multiple mills have existed in the locality.
6. Alternative and older names should redirect to the article.
7. Use common sense for windmills whose naming differs significantly from the usual naming patterns.