The arrival of the American mill in Fuerteventura is relatively recent, since it was established at the beginning of the 20th century.
With the wind as an ally, it made it possible to replace the traditional “de sangre” waterwheels, moved by donkeys or camels, favoring the extraction of water from the wells for irrigated crops such as alfalfa, potatoes and tomatoes, some of the latter native varieties such as the small and exquisite “huevo de gallo”.
Still in the 21st century, many of these windmills are still in use, bearing the name of what was the world’s first commercial brand in 1888: The Aermotor Chicago.
By 1960 there were about 500 wells with wind turbines and 184 are still in use today, most of them in the center of Fuerteventura (Tuineje and Antigua).
But the installation of diesel engines and the overexploitation of aquifers, responsible for an excess of salt in the water of more than 10 grams per litre, is condemning these beautiful examples of agricultural industrial archeology to ruin.
