Writing The Wind

1. Writing The Wind By: Audrey Harmon

2. The American windmill was developed for the farmer during the 1800s and 1900s.

3. The wheels were made from curved blades of wood or steel.

4. The wheels were mounted at the end of a horizontal shaft.

5. This shaft was connected to a pump by a vertical rod sunk deep into the ground.

6. The windmill blades moved to face the wind.

7. The wind moving the blades would produce enough energy to pump water up from the ground. The groundwater ran through a horizontal water pipe after it came up from the ground.

8. The farmer would place a large tank at the end of the pipe and keep it filled with water for the farm animals to drink.

9. Families would also use windmills near their homes to provide water for household use. The windmill was attached to a hand pump so that they could draw the water up into a pail.

10. Windmills can still be seen dotting the landscape in many Plains and Western states.

11. Modern technology has produced an updated version of the windmill as a way to produce electricity. This windmill is called a wind turbine.

12. Modern wind turbines are used all over the country today. You can even see them alongside traditional windmills.

13. In Oklahoma we have many wind turbines on wind farms in the western part of the state.

14. Wind turbines are made up of three main parts- the tower, the blades, and the nacelle (the box behind the blades). The nacelle is where the motion is turned into electricity.