Building record MDR3103 - Bonsall Lead Mill (remains of), Clatterway, Bonsall

Water powered lead processing mill of the late 18th/early 19th century. The building (in very poor condition) has a large wheel pit. It was formally John Alsop's cupola, a lead smelting work with facilities for rolling lead and the production of red lead. (1) This is part of a complex of fast disappearing mill sites. (2) The site is shown as 'Via Gellia Mill (Paint)' on the 1st ed. 25" Ordnance Survey map of c. 1880, as 'Via Gellia Mill (Disused)' on the 2nd edition at the end of the 19th century, and as 'Bonsall Mill (Dry Colour)' on the early 20th century edition. Modern mapping suggests that the easternmost building of the former mill still survives as an extant building, but that the majority of the mill has been demolished. (3, 4, 5) An alternative site has been proposed for Alsop's cupola, namely that of the later cotton mill to the south (HER 9663). (6)