Haxted Watermill

Haxted Mill

Haxted Watermill is a much-restored watermill in Surrey, England, close to the border with Kent, and is powered by the River Eden. It is a Domesday site and the mill was mentioned in the will of Sir Reginald de Cobham in 1361. The western half of the building dates to c.1580 and the eastern half dates to 1794. The mill was last used to grind flour in 1919 but worked until 1945. It was formerly a museum with a turning waterwheel and other machinery, but is now a brasserie and bar.

Machinery

For a description of the various pieces of machinery, see Mill machinery.

The current overshot waterwheel has a diameter of 10 feet (3.0 m) and a width of 9 feet (2.7 m). 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 11 horsepower (8.2 kW), 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 1580. The mill originally operated three pairs of millstones, but in the later years of its working life one pair was removed.

References

A guide to Haxted Water Mill Museum, 1981

External links

• The History of Haxted Water Mill accessed 2008-07-24