Medway watermills (lower tributaries)
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Man has used the Medway, its tributaries and sub-tributaries for over 1,150 years as a source of power. There are over two hundred sites where the use of water power is known.
Many different processes were performed by the use of water power:- Corn milling, fulling, paper making, iron smelting, pumping water, making gunpowder, vegetable oil extraction and electricity generation.
Today, there is just one watermill working for trade. Those that remain have mostly been converted. Such conversions include a garage, dwellings, restaurants, museums and a wedding venue. Some watermills are mere derelict shells, lower walls or lesser remains. Of the majority, there is nothing to be seen.
A large number of tributaries feed into the River Medway. The tributaries that powered watermills will be described in the order that they feed in. The mills are described in oder from source to mouth. Left bank and right bank are referred to as though the reader is facing downstream. This article deals with the watermills on the tributaries that feed in below Yalding.
[edit] Wateringbury Stream.
The Wateringbury Stream enters the Medway from the left at Wateringbury.
A site close to the source of the Wateringbury Stream shows some characteristic signs of previous use of waterpower.
[edit] Swanton, Mereworth
TQ 646 539
A large pond high in the Swanton valley may indicate the site of an old furnace mill. The head available being sufficient to power a large overshot waterwheel.
[edit] Mereworth Mill.
TQ 673 535
The Domesday Book records two mills, value 10/-, at Marovrde (Mereworth). The site of the last mill now lies in the grounds of Mereworth Castle. In 1521 it was a fulling mill, belonging to Sir Thomas Nevyle. In 1772 James Pound was the occupant, followed by his widow in March 1780 and John Pound in September 1780. He was at the mill until October 1791. Thomas Edmead was at the mill from 1792-1827. The mill was purchased by Viscount Falmouth c.1856. The mill was demolished by 1907 and the site is today marked by a waterfall at the eastern end of the lakes in the grounds of Mereworth Castle. The head would have been some 8 feet (2.44 m) or 10 feet (3.05 m), suggesting a high breast shot or overshot waterwheel.[B][C]
[edit] Mill at Wateringbury
The Domesday Book records three mills at Otringeberge (Wateringbury). Two mills were held by Ralf, son of Turald and valued at 3/-, a third was held by Hugh de Braibourne and worth 16d.
This mill was marked on C & G Greenwood's map of Kent, 1822. It was not mentioned in a survey of the parish carried out in 1828.[C]
[edit] Brattle (Upper) Mill, Wateringbury
TQ 686 534
Brattle Mill was a corn mill. It was named after a miller, Robert Brattle. It was first mentioned in 1783 and was owned by Robert Brattle. In 1838 the mill was owned by Harry Blaker and occupied by William Mills. Harry Blaker died c.1848 and the mill was run for a short time by his widow, Sarah. James Fremlin took over the lease of the mill by 1851, also running Warden Mill. He purchased the mill from Sarah Blaker c.1868. The miller at this time being Alfred Bloorman. The original overshot waterwheel was of wood. It was replaced by a turbine c.1910 and it was about this time the mill was last used for milling, then being used to generate electricity. Brattle Mill was sometimes known as Upper Mill. A 15 feet 6 inches (4.72 m) diameter by 6 feet (1.83 m) wide cast iron overshot waterwheel from Lower Mill, Polegate, Sussex, was reconstructed at the mill in the early 1980s and the owner intended to reconstruct the machinery to return the building to a working mill. The mill originally worked three pairs of millstones.[C][1]
[edit] Warden Mill, Wateringbury.
TQ 690 532
Warden Mill was a corn mill that took its name from the farm to which it belonged, Warden Farm. The first reference to this mill was in November 1822, when John Savage of Cobham leased the mill from John Selby of Marden and John Fellow of Eynsford. In October 1829 James Fremlin took over the lease. Selby and Fellow(s) held the freehold of the mill until October 1838. In 1839 the area of the mill pond was given as ¾ acre. Charles Whittaker was the owner of the mill in 1842 and by April 1845 Whittaker and Fremlin were joint owners, but by November 1847 the mill had passed back to John Selby. James Fremlin purchased a moiety of the property in October 1871. He purchased the other share in the property in December 1876. Richard Clemetson took over the mill between 1878 and 1887, followed by William James Hawes sometime between 1890 and 1895. The mill last worked in 1913 and was demolished c.1914. The head of water was some 8 feet (2.44 m). It is thought that this mill had a breast shot waterwheel.[B][C]
[edit] West Farleigh stream.
A stream rises at West Farleigh, and flows into the Medway from the right above Teston Lock. It powered a watermill.
[edit] Tutsham Oil Mill, West Farleigh.
TQ 709 531
Possibly a Domesday site, latterly the mill was an oil mill, burnt down on April 17, 1885. it was powered by a turbine. Only the front wall of the mill remains.[2]
[edit] Loose Stream.
The Loose Stream or River Loose enters the Medway from the right at Tovil.
Lambarde mentions thirteen fulling mills and one corn mill. Camden gives thirteen fulling mills. By c.1715 the Kentish cloth trade has declined, and Harris only mentions two fulling mills and one paper mill. Owing to the purity of the stream, paper making rose in importance in the nineteenth century.[A]
[edit] Brishing Court mill, Boughton Monchelsea.
The ancient manor of Brishing Court was the site of a mill.[A]
[edit] Leg-o-Mutton (Wilson's) mill, Loose.
TQ 762 521 This mill took its name from the shape of the mill pond. It was in the ownership of the Wilson family in the 1870s. In its later life the mill was converted into three cottages, now demolished. The head of water being some 12 feet (3.66 m) to 15 feet (4.57 m) indicates an overshot waterwheel.[B]
[edit] Old (Gurney's) Mill.
TQ 760 521
Only the foundations of this paper mill remain, by Salts Lane. The mill was demolished after the First World War. It had an overshot waterwheel of 15 feet (4.57 m) diameter and 9 feet (2.74 m) wide.[A][B][3]
[edit] Loose village watermill.
TQ 758 522
This was a corn mill, probably the one mentioned by Lambarde. It had an overshot waterwheel driving three pairs of millstones, and was working until the First World War but subsequently demolished.[A][3]
[edit] Little Ivy Mill.
This mill was attached to the manor of Pymps Court in the sixteenth century. It was then a fulling mill. Later it was a paper mill and latterly a corn mill with was converted into a house in 1912, the waterwheel and machinery being scrapped.[A][3]
[edit] Great Ivy Mill.
This was a fulling mill, later a paper mill. The overshot waterwheel was replaced by a turbine but the pentrough remained. Papermaking had ceased before the First World War. [3]
[edit] Bockingford Mill.
TQ 75681 53644
This was once a washing (fulling) mill, converted to corn milling by the mid nineteenth century. The present building dates from c.1880 and last worked c.1892, Mrs Marsham, the owner gave notice to the miller that she wished to terminate his tenancy in April 1891. The mill was extended and converted into a house shortly after. The last miller was a Mr. Wilson, with Tom Bates preceding him. A Mr. Rose, foreman at Little Ivy Mill was one of the first inhabitants of the converted mill. The mill pond was some 300 feet (91 m) long and 70 feet (21 m) wide, giving an area of 2,333 square yards (1,951 m²). The frame of the cast iron waterwheel, some 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter and 8 feet (2.44 m) wide remains under the building.[A][B][3]
[edit] Hayle Mill, Tovil.
TQ 756 538
This has been the site of a mill for many centuries. The last mill was a paper mill, built in 1808 and was noted for its hand-made paper. The mill was bought by John Green in 1817 and remained in the green family until the mill closed in 1987. In 1905, Herbert Green raised objections to the building of the Headcorn & Maidstone Junction Light Railway, the extension of the Kent & East Sussex Railway, a short portion of which was built as far as Tovil. His main objection was that the smoke from the locomotives would interfere with the operation of his mill. The eventual granting of the Light Railway Order involved a tunnel which was considerably longer than that which was originally proposed, a fact which pleased Mr. Green, who prophesised that "the longer the tunnel the less chance the line would be built."
The mill house burnt down on 20 June 2003, but fortunately the mill survived. The House was rebuilt in 2006-7 as part of the conversion of the Mill to apartments. The waterwheel is 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter and 9 feet 9 inches (2.97 m) wide, being an unusual combination of pitchback and high breast shot, having the ability to apply water to the wheel in two different positions. The waterwheel bears the legend 'F. Clark, Millwright, Ashford 1875'.[A][B][3][4][5][6][7]
[edit] Upper Crisbrook Mill.
TQ 756 541
The seventeenth century structure latterly had a cast iron overshot waterwheel driving pumping machinery, working until the 1960s. The derelict waterwheel survived in the early 1970s and has now been restored, the mill buildings being house converted c.1975. Both the Crisbrook mills were the property of the dean and chapter of Canterbury. The ancient spelling of these mills was 'Christbrook/Chrisbrook'.[A][B][3][8]
[edit] Lower Crisbrook Mill.
TQ 756 542
This late eighteenth century mill housed an internal water wheel; it was a corn mill c.1719. It had an overshot waterwheel driving four pairs of millstones. The mill last worked in 1905 and the machinery scrapped some thirty years later. An earlier mill on this site was probably the mill leased by the prior of Canterbury to Robert De Hucham. Only parts of the walls remain today.[A][3]
[edit] Upper Tovil Mill.
TQ 7545 5445 This was a fulling mill, later a paper mill. The mill had an overshot waterwheel but was burnt down in 1894. The rebuilt mill was powered by steam. The site of the mill was cleared in the 1980s to make way for a housing development. One of the Tovil mills belonged to Maidstone College in 1525.
[edit] Lower Tovil Mill (Allnut Mill).
TQ 7520 5475 This was a fulling mill, later a paper mill. The large overshot waterwheel was scrapped in 1941 but papermaking continued after the war. The buildings have all been demolished and developed for housing.[B][3][9]
[edit] Bridge Mill.
TQ 750 547 Originally a fulling mill, then a corn mill. A powder mill was established here in the eighteenth century and later an oil mill. Bridge mill was latterly a paper mill, ceasing work in the late twentieth century. The site has been cleared for a housing development.[A][3][9]
[edit] Loose Stream tributary
[edit] Upper Mill, Loose.
Originally a fulling mill, then a paper mill, latterly a corn mill with an overshot waterwheel driving three pairs of stones. This mill was in the ownership of the Wilson family in the 1870s. It closed in 1908 and has since been demolished.[A][3]
[edit] River Len.
The River Len enters the Medway from the Right at Maidstone. It powered a number of watermills, from source to mouth they were:-
[edit] Chegworth Mill, Ulcombe.
TQ 849 527
A mill has stood on this site since the early 14th Century. The present mill was a corn mill and worked until the late 1960s. It has an overshot waterwheel of 10 feet 10 inches (3.30 m) diameter and 7 feet 6 inches (2.29 m) wide, made by Weeks of Maidstone. The axle is cast iron and 7½ inches (190mm) square. The pit wheel is cast iron with 96 wooden cogs. The cast iron upright shaft carried a cast iron wallower with 38 teeth and a cast iron Great Spur Wheel with 104 cogs. It powered three pairs of millstones. One pair are French Burr stones (by Hughes & Son of Dover and London) of 44 inches (1.12 m) diameter, one pair are Peak stones of 46 inches (1.17 m) diameter and the third pair have a Peak runner stone on a French Burr bedstone, both 42 inches (1.07 m) diameter. The Crown Wheel drove two layshafts, which powered various machines including a "Ureka" winnower and an oat crusher by Ganz & Co., of Budapest, Hungary. A saw bench outside the mill was also driven by belts & pulleys. The sack hoist is driven from the top of the upright shaft. The last miller was Ted Uren, who started at the mill in 1961, and took over from Harold Potter. The mill was house converted c.1990.[B][10]
[edit] Leeds Castle Mill, Broomfield.
TQ 835 532
This mill dates from the early Thirteenth Century and fell out of use in the middle Seventeenth Century. The building was some 16 feet (4.88 m) wide, 42 feet (12.80 m) long and 35 feet (10.67 m) high. The waterwheel was driven from the lake to the castle. The mill was located between the Outer Barbican and Inner Barbican and the breast shot waterwheel would have been some 10 feet (3.05 m) or 11 feet (3.35 m) diameter and 3 feet (0.91 m) wide.[B][11][12]
[edit] Otham Mill.
Also known as Bearsted Mill, this corn mill was built in 1837. It was still standing in 1939 and the overshot waterwheel had a width that exceeded its diameter.[13]
[edit] Otham Paper Mill
This mill was marked on the first 6" Ordnance Survey map.[14]
[edit] Old Mill, Leeds.
TQ 820 541
This mill stood on the parish boundary of Hollingbourne and Leeds. It had an overshot waterwheel of at least 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter and 7 feet (2.13 m) width. The mill was built in 1733 as a paper mill by James Whatman and Richard Harris was the miller c.1736.[B][15][16]
[edit] Thurnham (Ballard's) Mill
This was a Domesday mill, and stood some 200 yards (180 m) upstream of the present mill, on the south side of Milgate Park. In 1624 the mill was occupied by Edward Chambers. In 1635 the mill, late in the occupation of Matthew Chambers, being two corn mills and a fulling mill, were conveyed to William Cage. In 1685 Celia Cage, widow of Matthew, held the mills. Fulling having apparently been discontinued by this time. The millpond was some 400 feet (120 m) long and the dam about 7 feet (2.13 m) high, indicating that the waterwheel was breastshot. William Barber was the miller in the mid Eighteenth Century, and Richard Ballard took the mill in 1777. Ballard's mill was demolished c.1828 and a new mill built downstream.[17][18]
[edit] Thurnham Mill.
TQ 802 547
This mill was built by the Cage family in the late 1820s on a piece of land called Byfrance, part of the Milgate estate. The tail race from Ballard's Mill was extended some 200 yards (180 m) to get sufficient height to drive an overshot waterwheel of 9 feet (2.74 m) diameter and 10 feet (3.05 m) wide. The waterwheel was carried on a cast iron axle and drove a 7 feet (2.13 m) diameter cast iron pit wheel with wooden cogs. That drove the wallower on the upright shaft, then a 6 feet (1.83 m) diameter cast iron great spur wheel drove four pairs of millstones. There were two pairs of French burr stones and two pairs of Peak stones. One pair of each type was 4 feet (1.22 m) diameter and the other pair of each type was 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) diameter. The Blinkhorn family had a long association as millers at the mill. The mill was sold for house conversion in 1986, at that time only the frame of the waterwheel survived, all other machinery having been removed. [18][19][20]
[edit] Turkey Mill, Boxley.
TQ 772 556
This mill was originally a fulling mill and is known to have been used as such between 1629 and 1671. It was at various times known as Powle Mill (1629), Overloppe Mill (1640,) and Gill's Mill (1732). The name Turkey Mill was first recorded in 1739. The mill was converted from a fulling mill to a paper mill during the time John Cripps owned it (1657-95). In 1740 James Whatman took over the mill, and it was here that he developed 'wove' paper. At this time Turkey Mill was the largest paper mill in the country. The mill was sold by James Watman (jr) in 1792 to Thomas, Robert and Finch Hollingworth of Maidstone for the substantial sum of £32,000. The Hollingworths were originally in partnership with William Balston, but he withdrew from the partnership in 1805 and set up a new paper mill at Springfield, Maidstone. Ownership of the mill passed from Thomas Hollingworth through his sons and thence through their nieces until eventually Major William Pitt was the sole owner. On his death in 1976 Turkey Mills were bought by Wiggins Teape and closed down, thus ending over 280 years of continuous paper production at the mill. The longest by any paper mill in Great Britain.
- Watermarks.
The copyright of the 'J Whatman' was transferred to William Balston in 1806 and production of Whatman paper at Turkey Mill. In 1859 the 'Turkey Mill' watermark was sold to William Balston's two sons at Springfield Mill, and thereafter paper produced at Turkey Mill was watermarked 'Original Turkey Mill', 'O.T.M.' or 'T & J Hollingworth'.
- Uses of paper produced at Turkey Mill.
The artist Thomas Gainsborough used paper produced at the mill for his drawings. He wrote in 1797 that it was worth 'a guinea a quire'. J. M. W. Turner also used Whatman Paper and William Blake used it for four of his illustrated books. Napoleon wrote his will on Whatman Paper and Queen Victoria used it for her personal correspondence. In the 1930s Soviet leaders used Whatman Paper to publish their five year plan for the future of the USSR and at the end of World War Two the peace treaty with Japan was written on Whatman Paper.[A][15]
[edit] Pole Mill, Boxley.
TQ 774 553
This mill was demolished in the 1830s in order to create the Lake at Mote Park, Maidstone. It was then in the Boxley parish.[B]
[edit] Christian Mill
This was a fulling mill, a now demolished cottage nearby was called Fulling Mill House and bore the date 1567.[A][B]
[edit] Padsole (Lenworth) Mill, Maidstone.
TQ 764 556
This mill stood in Water Lane. A dispute over the building of a mill here reached the Kings Court in 1313-4. The mill was known as Poll Mill in 1449 (a fulling mill). In 1510 the miller was one of 22 tenants of the Archbishop of Canterbury who considered his rent was excessive and refused to pay. In 1548 it consisted of two wheat mills, two fulling mills, a malt-mill and two potchers. It was known as Paddes Fulling Mill in 1550 and Paddle le Myll in 1608. The mill was rebuilt in 1796 as a paper mill and some half a century later it was converted into a corn mill. This mill was marked on Brown & Son's survey of Maidstone, 1821. This was demolished in 1874 and a new mill built nearby. The last mill building was a three storey brick structure. The building survived until the 1980s.[A][14][21]
[edit] Church Mill, Maidstone.
TQ 759 555
Church mill was standing in 1572. It was marked on Brown & Son's survey of Maidstone, 1821. The mill was demolished in 1902 as part of a road widening scheme. The millpond survives.[A][B][14]
[edit] Little Church Mill, Maidstone.
TQ 760 555 This mill stood on the watercourse that was the bypass from Church Mill. It was marked on Brown & Son's survey of Maidstone, 1821. The mill was demolished in the early 19th Century.[A][B][14]
[edit] Selesbourne (Len tributary).
[edit] Mill at Harrietsham
This was a grinding (corn) mill.[22]
[edit] The Fair Bourne (Len tributary).
[edit] Polhill Mill, Harrietsham.
TQ 861 523
This was a grinding (corn) mill. It had collapsed by 1933 and been demolished by 1939 although the waterwheel and pentrough by Weeks of Maidstone survive.[D][13][22]
[edit] Fairbourne Mill, Harrietsham
TQ 866 517
This mill was probably a Domesday mill. The first definite reference to this mill was in 1580, when the rent was assessed at 9 hens, commuted to 2d. The mill was called Fulborne Mill in 1608 and Edward Hickmut was the occupier of the mill in 1694. In 1798 there was no mill on the site although later another mill was built. This was a corn mill driving two pairs of millstones. Thomas Clark (1838-1929) was the miller through the second half of the nineteenth century. The waterwheel was later replaced by a turbine. The mill building remains, empty of machinery.[13][22][23][24][25]
[edit] Holme Myll.
This mill was owned by Francis Colepeper Esq at the time of his death in 1590. It was worth 40s per annum then.[26]
[edit] Hollingbourne Stream or Snagbrook (Len tributary).
[edit] Manor Mill.
A mill may have stood on this site since 980, and almost certainly since Domesday. In 1591 the mill was in the occupation of William Huxeley. In 1718 the mill pond was recorded as having an area of 70,000 square feet (6,500 m²). The lease of the mill was in the ownership of John Spencer Culpeper and passed to Francis Child in 1762. In 1868 the pond had decreased in size to 36,500 square feet (3,390 m²). The mill and house were rebuilt in 1880 and the miller from this time until 1925 was a Mr. Wratten. The main axle of the watermill broke in 1925 thus bringing an end to the working life of the mill. The mill had an overshot waterwheel 10 feet (3.05 m) diameter and some 3 feet (0.91 m) wide of composite construction and powered three pairs of millstones via a lineshaft. The mill building survives with its waterwheel but devoid of machinery.[D][27][28][29]
[edit] (2nd mill)
A corn mill was at work in 1847.[D][28]
[edit] (3rd mill)
A corn mill was at work in 1847.[D][28]
[edit] Hollingbourne Paper Mills.
In 1847 this mill was producing pasteboard. The mill was recorded as Hollingbourn Paper Mills in Bartholomew's Gazetteer of 1887. A paper making machine from this mill was sold to Messrs. Wiggins Teape in 1892. It was installed in Buckland Paper Mill, Dover.[D][28][30]
[edit] Eyhorne Mill.
TQ 835 546
This corn mill last worked sometime between 1885 and 1898. The waterwheel was probably breastshot as the head was only some 6 feet (1.83 m) or 7 feet (2.13 m). The mill was disused by 1898.[B]
[edit] Grove Mill
This mill was working in 1885.[B]
[edit] Park Mill
This mill was working in 1885.[B]
[edit] Leeds Stream (Len tributary)
[edit] Le Nethertoune Mill, Leeds.
TQ 823 534
This mill stood probably had a breastshot or undershot waterwheel. It was a fulling mill recorded as being "in ruins" in 1466.[B][14]
[edit] Abbey Mill, Leeds.
TQ 823 530
This mill was marked on the first 6" OS map of Kent in 1865. It had an overshot waterwheel and drove six pairs of millstones by a lineshaft. The mill was derelict but intact in 1936 but partly demolished later. Some machinery still remains in the mill.[D][14]
[edit] Priory Mill, Leeds
The site of this mill was recorded on a map of 1821.[14]
[edit] Bearsted Stream (Len tributary)
[edit] Lower Milgate Mill, Bearsted.
TQ 802 552
This mill stood was part of a small estate known as The Comb. It was in existence during the first half of the eighteenth century, appearing on a map of 1707 which was partly resurveyed in 1746.[B]
[edit] Cossington Stream.
A stream rises at Cossington and enters the Medway from the right at Aylesford. It powered a watermill.
[edit] Cossington Mill.
[edit] East Malling Stream.
The East Malling Stream enters the Medway from the left at Aylesford. The Domesday Book recorded two mills worth 10/- at Metlinge (East Malling). In 1363 there were two mills in the village. East Malling possessed a fulling mill from 1567 to 1719, most likely to have been Middle Mill. Thomas Tomlyn was a miller in the 17th Century, Thomas Pidgeon, corn miller of East Malling died in 1685, In 1706 there were three mills - Upper, Weir and Middle Mills. The history of the paper mills needs to be read together, as they were all linked through various owners.[C]
[edit] Upper Mill, East Malling.
TQ 697 571
James Brooks was the at the mill in 1752, when the mill was rated at £61, increasing to £122 in 1757. By 1764 the mill was operating as a paper mill, James Brooks insuring the mill for £150 in that year. One of his apprentices wa Nicholas Tapsfield, who was later to work at the paper mill at Sundridge. In 1801 he insured the mill for £350 and died in 1805 aged 69. John Larking took the mill 1n 1806, it being then rated at £131. Larking went into partnership with John Morrice by 1816 and Morrice was recorded as at the mill from 1817-21. He was succeeded by William Blunden, who was working at Upper Mill in 1819, followed by Robert Tassell c.1823. The mill underwent considerable development between 1840 and 1860. It was demolished in the years between the First and Second World Wars. An illustration of Upper Mill can be seen here.
The mill pond was some 200 yards (180 m) long, and covered an area of just over ½ acre in 1840. The mill had an overshot waterwheel of some 10 feet (3.05 m) diameter and 8 feet (2.44 m) wide, the remains of which were on site in 1972. The tail race discharged into the mill pond of Weir Mill.[C][33]
[edit] Weir Mill, East Malling.
TQ 698 572
Probably one of the two Domesday mills. The mill was marked on a map of 1706. The next known mention of Wier Mill was in 1810 when the mill was marked on the map accompanying the enclosure award. In 1840 James Phillips was the owner-occupier of the mill, which was a water corn mill with 12 feet (3.66 m) waterwheel driving two pairs of stones. The pond of Weir Mill is roughly square in shape and covers an area of just over ¼ acre. The mill passed from James to Thomas Phillips c.1855 and to Mr. T J Dewe c,1893. G E Hide was working the mill in 1905 and S R Anscombe bought the mill in 1913. The mill last ground corn in 1930 and was bought by Whitbread Ltd., the Maidstone brewers, who used part of the mill to store hops. The mill subsequently passed into the ownership of Wm. Lillico & Son and was then used as a general store. During this time the timber part of the mill buildings were becoming derelict.
- The surviving mill building
The timber clad original mill building dates from the reign of Queen Anne. A brick extension was added in two stages, the last part being built in 1889. Roller mills of 4½ sack capacity were installed c.1893 as was a boiler and steam engine, principally to drive the roller mills whilst the waterwheel drove the stones. The steam engine was a beam engine, it was eventually sold to a buyer in the USA.
- The wooden mill
This is four storeys in height, the base being of brick and the upper storeys timber. The 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter waterwheel was overshot with eighty buckets and carried on a 9 inches (230 mm) diameter cast iron axle. The wooden upright shaft was only 6 inches (150 mm) diameter, reducing to 4 inches (100 mm) at first floor level. It carried a Great Spur Wheel and an iron Crown Wheel of 6 feet (1.83 m) diameter. This received a drive from the steam engine so that the mill could be driven that way if necessary. The mill drove three pairs of millstones.
- The brick mill
This was built in two parts, latterly known as the "middle room" and the "end room", this last part being built in 1889. The mill was some six storeys in height, dwarfing the original mill. The middle room contained the roller mills, six in total.[C]
[edit] Middle Mill, East Malling.
TQ 696 574
Probably one of the two Domesday mills. Middle Mill was in existence in 1684 when the pond was shown on a map drawn by Abraham Walter. In 1755 Richard Gowlett was the papermaker here, and in that year he took John Evernden and Elizabeth Sands as apprentices. He insured the mill for £35 in 1770 and he died c.1778, his widow Mary paying the rates on the mill until 1798 when the mill was sold to George Blunden. William Blunden was at the mill in 1816, but George Blunden was again recorded at the mill in 1824. He was recorded at a manufacturer of brown and white paper in 1832 and Francis Collins joined him in partnership that year. Robert Tassell acquired the mill c.1833 and went into partnership with Henry Smith in 1838. In 1841 there was an inrease in the rateable value of the property from £54 to £150. The partnership was dissolved in 1848, all three mills being in the sole ownership of Robert Tassell from 1834 to 1838. The mill stood empty from 1848 to 1850, when the Busbridge brothers took over the running of the mills. The were involved in a Court case in 1859 over the discharge of foul water used in the paper making process. The mill pond covered an area of just over ½ acre. An illustration of Middle Mill can be seen here.[B][C][34]
[edit] Lower Mill, East Malling.
TQ 697 576
In 1792 Clement and George Taylor were granted a patent for the use of chlorine for bleaching rags for use in paper manufacture. James Whatman claimed that he wa able to prove that several trials had already been made, including by Mr. Larking, who owned Lower Mill at that time. In 1816, John Larking and John Morrice were in partnership at both Upper and Lower Mills, the partnership being dissolved on 8th October of that year, John Morrice taking both mills. Robert Tassell took both mills by 1821, making both brown and white papers. He went into partnership with Henry Smith in 1838 and by 1844 they owned all three paper mills. This partnership was dissolved c.1844 and Henry Smith was the sole occupier of the three mills, worth together £420. In 1848 Lower Mill was recorded as empty and valued at £120. All three mills were managed by Thomas Harris Busbridge and George Frederick Busbridge from c.1849. It is likely that Lower Mill ceased regular production of paper in 1848, being used spasmodically until 1851, and closing completely by 1852. The mill seems to have been demolished by 1860, not appearing on the first 25 inch Ordnance Survey map. The mill pond is some 200 yards (180 m) long and 50 yards (46 m) wide, covering an area of just under 1½ acres (6,100 m²).[B][C]
[edit] Church Mills, Ditton.
TQ 709 582
A Domesday site, one mill was recorded at Dictvne (Ditton) with a value of 10/-. Tenants of this corn mill include Edward Smith in 1724, J Whiteing from 1725-43, Thomas Shepard 1744-54, his widow in 1755-6, William Luck in 1757. Thomas Allchin was at the mill in 1840 and was still there in 1852. Joseph Jellis was the miller in 1887-90 and Robert Foster was the last known miller in 1905. The mill closed down c.1912. The mill is located close to the ford in Bradbourne Lane. In its later years the waterwheel was replaced by a turbine.[C]
[edit] Mill Hall Mill, Aylesford.
TQ 715 589
This mill was marked on a map of 1684, it was a paper mill at that time. In 1695 Edward Middleton was working the mill, which then had a rateable value of £20. He was at the mill until 1724 when William Harris took it over. William Harris died in 1741 and his widow ran the mill until 1744 when Thomas Harris took it over. He was still at the mill in 1763 when he insured the mill for £100. in 1776 Thomas Golding insured the mill. He was still at the mill in 1803 but by 1812 his son Stephen Golding was recorded as a master paper maker of Ditton when he married. There was a partnership between Thomas Golding and his sons Stephen and Thomas jr which was dissolved in 1816. The artist Jean Claude Natteas (1785-1822) sketched the mill in 1816.[35] In 1832, Robert Tassell took over the mill and it ceased to make paper by 1841. In 1841, Stephen Spratt was recorded as the occupier of the mill, by then a corn mill. he was at the mill until at least 1862, the next change of ownership being recorded as Charles Stonham & Sons in 1878. A steam engine was recorded at the mill in 1887, but had gone by 1890, when Walter Skinner was the miller, still there in 1895. Henry Packham was the last miller, there at least 1905-13, but the mill had stopped working by 1922. The machinery was removed and the building converted into stables by A E Reed & Co. Ltd. the mill was demolished c.1950 but the waterwheel survived until 1969.
The mill was of three storeys, the base being of ragstone and the upper storeys of timber, clad in tarred weatherboarding. The overshot waterwheel was 14 feet (4.27 m) diameter and 6 feet (1.83 m) wide, mounted on a 9 inches (230 mm) square iron axle, driving an iron pit wheel. The iron pentrough was dated 1887. The final remains of Mill Hall Mill were demolished to make way for the foundations of a footbridge over the M20.[B][C]
[edit] Addington Brook.
A stream enters the Medway from the left at Snodland. It powered six watermills.
[edit] Ford Place Mill, Wrotham.
TQ 635 585
This was a corn mill, in the Le Clerke family's ownership for many years, until the last member died in the Battle of Cropredy Bridge. The mill was later in the Best family's ownership. The eighteenth century building remained in 1932, empty of machinery. The waterwheel was overshot approximately 15 feet (4.57 m) diameter and 3 feet (0.91 m) wide. The mill building was demolished in 1970 to construct the M26.[A][B][31][36]
[edit] Addington Mill.
TQ 656 587
This was a corn mill, demolished in the nineeteenth century. The site now lies within the West Malling Golf Course.[B][31]
[edit] Ryarsh Mill.
A Domesday site, Ryarsh Mill was a corn mill, last worked in 1930. The building dated from the late eighteenth century. The waterwheel was overshot.[A][31][37]
[edit] Leybourne Mill.
TQ 687 585
A Domesday sity Leybourne Mill was a corn mill. The waterwheel was oveshot.[A][31]
[edit] mill site, Leybourne.
[edit] Ham Mill, Snodland.
This was a corn mill.
[edit] Holborough Stream.
A stream rises above Snodland, and enters the river from the left downstream of the Addington Brook. It powered a watermill.
[edit] Holborough Mill.
A very ancient mill site, a mill was presented by King Egbert I of Kent to Bishop Beormond of Rochester in 836. In 1100 it was valued at £1. The mill had fallen into disrepair in the early fourteenth century, but was rebuilt by Bishop Hamo Hethe in 1322. The surviving mill building has a cast iron overshot waterwheel, 16 feet (4.88 m) diameter. It was a corn mill.[A][31][38]
[edit] References
A = Reid, Kenneth (1987). "Chapter 10", Watermills of the London Countryside, Vol 1. Cheddar, Somerset, UK: Charles Skilton Ltd.. ISBN 0284 39165 4.
B = Fuller & Spain (1986). Watermills (Kent and the Borders of Sussex). Maidstone: Kent Archaeological Society. ISBN 0 906746 08 6.
C = Fuller, Michael (1980). The Watermills of the East Malling and Wateringbury Streams. Maidstone: Christine Swift..
D = Coles Finch, William (1933). Watermills & Windmills. London WC1: C W Daniel Company.
- ^ Sussex Mills Group
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Mills Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Booklab
- ^ Handprint
- ^ Stephens Museum
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ a b Tritton, Paul, One wealthy widow, 600 working men, <http://www.valleycon.org/>. Retrieved on 27 January 2008 Select "Local History" from left hand menu, then "One wealthy widow, 600 working men"
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ a b c Kent County Library
- ^ a b c d e f g Mills Arhcive
- ^ a b Turkey Mill
- ^ NGA
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ a b Mills Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ a b c Harrietsham Village
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Mill Archive
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ Culpepper
- ^ Mills Archive
- ^ a b c d Mills Archive
- ^ (1985) Traditional Kent Buildings, No. 4. Kent County Council Education Committee., pp11-14. ISSN 0260 4116.
- ^ Hatfield
- ^ a b c d e f Mills Archive
- ^ listed as Tottington mill on Mills Archive website?
- ^ Rootsweb
- ^ BAPH
- ^ Artfund
- ^ City Ark
- ^ British History
- ^ Snodland History
| River Medway in Kent and tributaries |
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River Beult • River Bewl • River Bourne • East Malling Stream • River Eden • River Len • Loose Stream • River Medway • River Teise • Wateringbury Stream |
| List of rivers of Great Britain |
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