Oh, I’m in the mood to see what can be found in railroad windmill documentation.
This compact mechanism was mounted on a four-legged wood tower that could be constructed over a well in one day. Railroad companies immediately recognized windmills as an inexpensive means of providing water for steam engines and for attracting settlers to semi-arid regions through which they planned to lay track. In 1860 the Houston Tap and Brazoria Railway purchased the right to manufacture and use James Mitchell’s “Wind Wheel” on its right-of-way from Houston to Wharton. By 1873 the windmill had become an important supplier of water for railways, small towns where there were no public water systems, and small farms. Many of the very early mills were crude, inefficient, homemade contraptions. One of the popular makeshift mills was a wagon wheel with slats nailed around it to catch the wind, mounted on half an axle. The axle was fastened securely to a post erected beside the well. A sucker rod was pinned to the edge of the hub. It was stationary and worked only when the wind blew in the right direction. The windmills used later on the big ranches were the more dependable factory-made windmills.
https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/aow01
Seems there eventually came to be “railroad pattern” windmills,
https://books.google.com/books?id=aAHK-CmMmfIC&pg=PA110&lpg=PA110&dq=railroad+windmill+pump&source=bl&ots=WY3Atm7lck&sig=GvYptM4zw30Hn4Jbj4N-VJEThCE&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiOlMCUqdTaAhVS-qwKHRglDOcQ6AEIhQEwDQ#v=onepage&q=railroad%20windmill%20pump&f=false
An illustration of a Halladay windmill in use by a railroad station, 1885. Public Domain
Railroads were another important customer. Steam locomotives had to be watered at regular intervals, which was accomplished with a string of tanks and pumps. On the first transcontinental railroad, tanks occurred about every twenty miles. Self-regulating windmills, some of which were also self-oiling, required little to no maintenance and could operate unattended, making them ideal for long stretches between towns. Manufacturers started putting out windmills that had wider bases and could pump greater quantities of water. These came to be called “railroad pattern” windmills. The most common version—and one of the biggest and most powerful—was called the Railroad Eclipse. Eventually, some communities used railroad pattern mills for municipal water supplies.
… (quotes are opposite of order in article) …
Self-governing water pump windmills soon became a staple of the American homestead. They were simple, well-constructed, and dependable, the windmill equivalent of a pair of denim jeans. At first they were mostly wood, but metal varieties became more and more common. Almost every farm had one. Some people, {some logging layouts?} (https://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)unable to afford a professional windmill, fashioned their own using manufactured versions as models. According to an article in the journal Wind Energy, more than one million such windmills had been erected across the United States starting in the mid-19th century.
https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/windmills-water-pumping-museum-indiana
Well, hey, they were even used in the UK;
American-style windpumps were never as ubiquitous in Britain as they were in North America and in other countries with comparable conditions, such as Australia, Argentina and South Africa. However, they did become a reasonably common sight, particularly in flatter, drier areas. The Royal Agricultural Society of England organised wind engine trials in 1903, and awarded medals to favoured models. Among British firms, Duke & Ockendon (‘Dando’) of Littlehampton (which is still in business as a manufacturer of drilling equipment) offered a range of wind pumps, often on more than usually elaborate steel towers. Some were supplied to British railway companies, including the London & South Western (for example at Gillingham, Dorset, and Bentley, Hampshire) and the London, Brighton & South Coast (for example at Christ’s Hospital and Ford).
https://hfstephens-museum.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=43:wind-and-water&catid=29&Itemid=125
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