Mills on the River Wey and its tributaries

Overview

Many watermills lined the banks of the River Wey, England, from the 17th century, due to the river's ability to provide a reliable, year-round flow of water. These mills chiefly ground wheat, often referred to as corn, for flour and oats for animal feed though many were used in the production of other goods such as paper, cloth, leather, wire and gunpowder. The river was home to more mills per mile than anywhere else in Great Britain. The mill situated at Coxes Lock near Addlestone, Surrey, is the largest. There are many mills on the river's principal tributaries, such as the Tillingbourne and the Ock, as well as mills on the Whitmore Vale stream, Cranleigh Waters and Hodge Brook. The last commercial mill on the Tillingbourne, Botting's Mill at Albury, closed in 1991. Headley Water Mill, on the Wey South branch is still in business.

Town Mill, Guildford still has a water turbine driven generator producing electricity for the town. Note: The mills are listed from source to mouth for each waterway.

Wey (North branch) mills

;Orps Mill, Alton National Grid Reference: . A fulling mill dating back to about the 15th century. The name is thought to come from an early owner, Thomas Thorpe. It became a dwelling by 1720 and later was converted into a number of cottages. They were demolished when the Watercress Line was extended from Alton to Winchester. ;King's Mill, Alton National Grid Reference: Also known as Hyde Mill and Spittle Mill as it was part of the manor of Hyde Abbey before the dissolution of the monasteries. Initially a corn mill, a paper mill was established alongside, which became known as King's Mill after the tenant, William King, who established the King's Pond, around 1780, to provide reliable year-round source of water. It later became known as Spicers Mill after a later owner.

The mill finally closed in 1909, after which is was used as industrial premises before being destroyed by fire in 1985. ;Anstey Mill, Alton National Grid Reference: . Ruined but with the wheel still in place. It is a Grade II listed building. ;Upper Neatham Mill, Holybourne National Grid Reference: . A corn mill formerly belonging to Waverley Abbey. It burnt down in 1934. No trace remains. ;Lower Neatham Mill, Alton National Grid Reference: . Originally a fulling mill but later converted to a corn mill. Now a private dwelling. It is a Grade II listed building. ;Wyck Mill, Froyle National Grid Reference: . Fulling mill, later known as Mill Court Mill. No trace remains. ;Froyle Mill National Grid Reference: . Fulling mill, no trace remains. ;Bentley Mill National Grid Reference: .

Also known as Groveland Mill, or Turk's Farm Mill, it was built in 1640 as a paper mill, but was a fulling mill and a corn mill for some time. The machinery was dismantled around 1915 and the mill was demolished in 1917. The mill house survives and is now a Grade II listed building. ;Willey Mill, Farnham National Grid Reference: . A Domesday site and a Grade II listed building. ;Weydon Mill National Grid Reference: . Also known as La Medmulle. Ceased milling in 1909 and the mill was demolished in 1919. During the demolition, an English Civil War era cannon ball was found embedded in one of the walls. Now a ruin. Shown on the 1871 Ordnance Survey map as Woodmeadhatch Mill. After milling ceased it became the Farnham Sanitary Laundry. It was then occupied by the West Surrey College of Art and Design and by 2018 was a residential care home.

It is a Grade II listed building. ;High Mill, Farnham National Grid Reference: . A corn mill until 1900, it then switched to producing animal feed until its closure in 1950. ;Waverley Mill National Grid Reference: . Part of the Abbey estate, it was demolished in 1900. No trace of it remains. ;Tilford Mill National Grid Reference: . Also known as Wanford Mill. The brick footings and the remnants of the mill race are all that remains.

Nadder Stream mills

;Bourne Mill, Farnham National Grid Reference: . Dating to the 17th century, the remaining part of the mill now houses a manufacturing and retail business. It is a Grade II listed building. ;Little Bourne Mill, Farnham National Grid Reference: A small corn mill fed by the tail race of Bourne Mill. It had ceased operations by the time the railway was built in 1849 and destroyed in a fire some time later. ;Rock Mill, Farnham National Grid Reference: . A corn mill built around 1770 and situated on a stream from Badshot Lea. It ceased operating in 1877, by which time the waterwheel was supplemented by a 10HP Corliss steam engine. A large mill in its time, only the foundations remain.

Wey (South branch) mills

;Lowder Mill, Fernhurst National Grid Reference: . Dated to about 1729, it appears to have ceased working by 1881. Now a private dwelling. It is a Grade II listed building. ;Sickle Mill, Shottermill National Grid Reference: . Originally a paper mill built alongside an earlier hammer mill used by a firm of sickle makers, hence the name. An 1895 map shows the mill being used for the production of candle wicks and cord. By the 1920s it had ceased to function and was acquired by the Haslemere Urban District Council and used for various purposes. ;Shotter Mill, Shottermill National Grid Reference: . Originally a fulling mill, later a corn mill. It gave its name to the hamlet that grew up around it, now a suburb of Haslemere. It is a Grade II listed building. ;New Mill, Shottermill National Grid Reference: . A skin mill or tannery, later a paper mill.

It ceased operation in 1903 and became derelict, finally being demolished in 1978. No visible trace of the mill remains. ;Bramshott Corn Mill National Grid Reference: . ;Standford Mill National Grid Reference: . A paper mill built in 1830, now a private dwelling. ;Headley Park Mill National Grid Reference: . An unusual hexagonal shaped corn mill that operated until the 1890s. In 1904 it was fitted with a dynamo to provide electricity to Headley Park House. A fire in the 1960s left the building derelict. ;Frensham Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill built in 1876 to replace an earlier mill on the site. It was demolished in 1922.

River Slea mills

;Old Mill, Selborne National Grid Reference: . A corn mill on the Oakhanger Stream. Now converted to a private dwelling, it is a Grade II listed building. ;Dorton Mill, Selborne National Grid Reference: . A corn mill on the Oakhanger Stream. ;Kingsley Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill situated at the confluence of the Kingsley and Oakhanger Streams. Along with the adjacent mill house it has been converted to a private dwelling. It is a Grade II listed building.

Whitmore Vale Stream mills

;Barford Upper Mill National Grid Reference: . Originally a paper mill and later a flock mill, it is now a private dwelling. It is a Grade II listed building. ;Barford Middle Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill. Demolished and replaced by a private dwelling.

Wey River mills

Elstead Mill National Grid Reference: . Corn mill, later used by a company producing worsted braid. It was used as a hospital in World War I. In the late twentieth century it started use as a pub. It is a Grade II* listed building. Cutt Mill National Grid Reference: . In the grounds of Cutt Mill House, little remains of the mill, which ceased working in the 1930s. Silk Mill, Thursley National Grid Reference: . Operating between 1794 and 1849, it was demolished by 1871. Westbrook Mill National Grid Reference: . Former tannery, fulling mill, and paper mill. In 1881 the waterwheel was used to drive a Siemans generator making Godalming the first town in Britain to be lit by electricity. Catteshall Mill National Grid Reference: . Originally a paper mill, later a fulling mill, corn mill, and foundry.

In 1869 the wheel was replaced by a Fourneyron water turbine, thought to be the largest ever produced. When part of the mill was demolished in 1981 the turbine was rescued for possible future display. Unstead Mill National Grid Reference: . A roller corn mill alongside Unstead Lock, it ceased operation in 1906 and was subsequently completely demolished. Artington Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill that ceased operation in the late 17th century. Situated on the west bank of the river, just upstream of Guildford Bridge. The site is now occupied by a pub. The course of the mill stream is now Millmead Road. Stoke Mill National Grid Reference: . 19th-century corn mill now used as offices. Bower's Mill, Burpham National Grid Reference: . A paper mill was on this site in 1733 and a corn mill added around 1879.

After paper making ceased it became a corn mill and later it was used to produce linseed oil. All milling ceased by 1910 and the mill was demolished in 1945. Gresham Mill, Old Woking National Grid Reference: . Also known as Woking Mill, it was a paper mill and printing works, now converted into private apartments. Newark Mill National Grid Reference: . A mid-17th-century corn mill, it was used as a paper mill between 1855 and 1859. It closed in 1943 after being bombed in an air raid. It was destroyed by fire in 1966. Coxes Lock Mills National Grid Reference: . The original mill was built in 1776 for working iron. Replaced by a corn and silk mill in 1829, part of which is still extant. This was, in turn, replaced with a large corn mill in 1900 which ground flour for Allied Mills until 1983. The latter has been converted to private dwellings.

Liberty Mill National Grid Reference: A sawmill built in 1843. It drew water from the navigation and discharged it into the Bourne Stream. It continued working well into the 20th century. At one time the Airscrew Company made wooden propellers here and later Weyroc used it for the manufacture of chipboard. The site is now a small industrial estate. Ham Haw Mill National Grid Reference: . Also known as Whittets Mill. Originally a paper mill built in 1691. It was used as a corn mill until 1817 when it ceased to operate. From 1842 it was used as a linseed oil mill with a second wheel added. The mill was in operation until the 1960s when it was largely destroyed by fire. No trace of the mill remains.

River Ock mills

;Enton Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill built c.1621. It is now a private dwelling and incorporates the mast of a 19th-century tea clipper as the newel post of a spiral staircase. The mill features in a painting, Sheep Washing, by the 19th century artist, William Hull. It a Grade II listed building. ;Rake Mill, Witley National Grid Reference: . Originally a fulling mill dating from 1577. The mill was used by the artist Neville Lytton as a studio, but it, along with the bulk of Lytton's sketches and paintings, was destroyed by a fire in 1902. ;Ockford Mill National Grid Reference: . A 19th-century corn mill, it ceased working in 1934. It is currently used as a light industrial unit. National Grid Reference: . A flour mill. Sections of the building date back to the 17th century. It ceased milling in 1950 but continued in use as a warehouse.

Now known as the Old Mill, it houses a light industrial firm.

Cranleigh Waters mills

Cranleigh Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill dating, in parts, to the 16th-century. It is a Grade II listed building. Wonersh Mill National Grid Reference: . An 18th-century corn mill, it was modernized in 1885 with a water turbine replacing the wheel. It ceased milling in 1910 and is now used as storage. Hascombe Mill National Grid Reference: . Dating back to 1690, the mill ceased working in the late 1890s. Only a few ruins remain. Snowdenham Mill National Grid Reference: . Built around 1792, it was a corn mill and later a feed mill. Now abandoned but with its machinery still in situ. It was proposed as a candidate for restoration in 1979, but permission was not obtained and the building continues to deteriorate. Bramley Mill National Grid Reference: . A 17th-century corn mill on the site of an earlier fulling mill.

Ceased working in 1931 and converted to domestic accommodation in 1935.

Tillingbourne mills

The Tillingbourne is the main tributary of the Wey and 24 mill sites have been identified along its course. Brookmill National Grid Reference: . Established in the 16th century, possibly as a gunpowder mill Sutton Mill National Grid Reference: . On the Holbury St Mary Stream tributary. Possibly a 14th-century fulling mill and corn mill. Albury Mill National Grid Reference: . A medieval corn mill that was burnt down in an arson attack in 1830. The arsonist was executed for the attempted murder of the miller. Rebuilt in brick and fitted with water turbines to provide power to Albury Park. Postford House Mill National Grid Reference: . Built in the 1830s after the conversion of the upper and lower mills to paper making. Closed in 1865.

In 1677, a survey by Sir Jonas Moore established the existence of the following individual mills: *Lower Works: Chilworth Mill, Copps Mill, coal and brimstone mill, Wood Pile Mill, Dust Mill, Doubling Mill, Chattering Mill and Shifford Mill. *Middle Works: Lower Mill, Cole and Brimstone Mill, Midle Mill (sic), Randill's Mill, and the Upper Mill. *Upper Works:Twist Mill, Lower Mill, 1st parson's mill, 2nd parson's mill, 3rd parson's mill and the Upper Mill. Chilworth Great Mill National Grid Reference: . Built as a paper mill producing paper for bank-notes. Ceased production and closed in the 1870s. It was rescued from dereliction by Ferguson's Gang in 1932 and donated to the National Trust.

Hodge Brook mills

Pirbright Mill National Grid Reference: . A corn mill and timber mill from the early 19th century. Now converted to a private dwelling but with much of the machinery still in situ. Heath Mill, Worplesdon National Grid Reference: . Built in 1902 to replace an earlier mill destroyed by fire. Now a private dwelling. Rickford's Mill, Worplesdon National Grid Reference: . An 18th century corn mill now converted to a private dwelling.

East Clandon Stream mills

Ockham Mill National Grid Reference: . Built in 1862 to replace a previous mill destroyed by fire. The building is in the style of those owned by the Earl of Lovelace and is a Grade II listed building. It ceased milling in 1927 and remained derelict until 1958 when it was converted into a private dwelling. The owner has subsequently had the machinery professionally restored. Clandon Mill National Grid Reference: . No trace remains.

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