Listed Building record MDR3231 - Bradbourne Mill, Bradbourne
Type and Period (3)
Protected Status/Designation
Full Description
Corn mill, with wheel and machinery. Large timbers can be seen in the stream bed. (1)
This three storey stone corn mill is still standing on the A524 road to Bakewell, some four miles north of Ashbourne. The mill is built into the hillside and, although disused from about 1923, represents an interesting variation on the normal mill encountered in Derbyshire. The stone building, which carries the date of 1726, is shown on a whole range of maps starting with Burdett's survey of 1767. The mill is complete with a garner above and had a coal fired kiln alongside, although the ventilation ducts were removed when the building was re-roofed in about 1966. Behind the mill is the dried up mill pond which had been fed by an extensive system of leats. Water from the pool passed under the path to the miller's cottage and fed two overshot waterwheels, located on the north side of the building. These were offset from each other and their iron pentroughs are still in place, as is the framing of an iron waterwheel of about 12ft in diameter. The other wheel was said to have been of wooden construction but has been removed. Inside the mill most of the original machinery was still in place in 1996, although at that date completely submerged under the debris of years. There are three pairs of millstones still in place. The vats and associated furniture are still intact. The mill last worked in about 1923, although an attempt to get it working again in the 1940s apparently failed. (2)
A mill has existed at Bradbourne since at least the mid 15th century and there are references to it again a century later. Whether this early mill stood on the same site as the present buildings is uncertain but highly probable. However, further upstream where the mill goyt is taken off Havenhill Dale Brook, medieval timbers have been found associated with what was formerly a dam and mill pond [see SMR 2017], and it may be that the earliest mill was sited there. The present mill building probably relates to the '1750' date stone on one of the quoins at the south-east corner of the building. The two water wheels probably date from 1862 although most of the 1750 mill machinery still survives. As such, it is almost certainly the oldest surviving in the county, the re-modelling in the 19th century being mainly confined to the replacement water wheels.
As part of an archaeological watching brief in 2005, the millpond was cleared of debris down to its original base. (4)
Rubble limetone buildings of the former Bradbourne Mill now incorporated into the adjacent farm. (5)
Sources/Archives (5)
- <1> SDR9554 Index: NDAT. 0375. 0375.
- <2> SDR19066 Bibliographic reference: Gifford, A. 1999. Derbyshire Watermills: Corn Mills.. A12, pp 29-30, plate 3.
- <3> SDR20940 Unpublished document: Strange, P. 1999. Bradbourne Mill, Derbyshire. An Inventory of the Mill Machinery..
- <4> SDR20796 Unpublished document: Marshall, B (ARS). 2007. Bradbourne Mill, Bradbourne, Matlock: watching brief report.
- <5> SDR18788 Bibliographic reference: Fowkes, D (ed.). 1997. Derbyshire Industrial Archaeology. A Gazetteer of Sites. Part IV. Derbyshire Dales. p 12.
Map
Location
| Grid reference | Centred SK 2011 5216 (18m by 22m) Approximate |
|---|---|
| Civil Parish | BRADBOURNE, DERBYSHIRE DALES, DERBYSHIRE |
Related Monuments/Buildings (0)
Related Events/Activities (2)
- EDR2823
- EDR2738
Please contact the HER for details.
External Links (0)
Record last edited
Nov 6 2023 4:35PM