Haxted Watermill Explained

Type:Watermill
Gbgridref:TQ 41859 45507
Location:Haxted Road, Lingfield
Area:Surrey
Built:ca 1680
Designation1:Grade II
Designation1 Offname:Haxted Mill
Designation1 Date:11 Jun 1958

Haxted Watermill is a much-restored Grade II listed watermill in Surrey, England, close to the border with Kent, and is powered by the River Eden.

History

The mill was first mentioned in the will of Sir Reginald de Cobham in 1361. The western half of the current building, constructed on the foundations of the 14th Century mill, dates to about 1680 and the eastern half dates to 1797. The mill was last used to grind flour in 1919 but worked until 1945, grinding meal for local farmers.[1] The last miller was Thomas Stanford whose family had operated the mill for the previous two centuries. Purchased by Mr Woodrow in 1949, he spent the next twenty years restoring the machinery to working order. The mill was opened as a museum of water milling and water pumping in 1966.[2] In recent years it has operated as a bar and brasserie but is now closed. In 2016, planning permission was granted to site three shepherd huts on the adjoining site as guest accommodation for visitors to the mill.[3]

Machinery

The current overshot waterwheel has a diameter of 10feet and a width of 9feet. It was installed in about 1830, but by 1972 the 72 iron buckets had failed and were replaced by fibreglass replicas. The bearing-stone for an earlier, undershot waterwheel was found during renovation and this dates to the fourteenth century. In full working order the current wheel produced about 11hp, rotating at 8 r.p.m. and driving three pairs of millstones, through gearing, at 120 r.p.m. The pit wheel and wallower are of the same date as the waterwheel, but the great spur wheel, made of oak with applewood teeth, has been dated to 1680. The mill originally operated three pairs of French burr millstones. At some stage a fourth pair was added, driven from a shaft off the crown wheel, but this was too much for the machinery and was disconnected.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: The history of the Haxted Watermill. Haxted Mill Waterside Brasserie & Bar. https://web.archive.org/web/20080522074447/http://www.haxtedmill.co.uk/history.asp. 26 February 2018. 2008-05-22.
  2. Web site: HAXTED MILL, Haxted Road, Lingfield. Exploring Surrey's Past. 26 February 2018.
  3. Web site: Tandridge Planning Portal.
  4. Web site: Haxted Mill HER Data. Exploring Surrey's Past. 26 February 2018.