Shalford Mill
Encyclopedia
Shalford Mill is an 18th century watermill
located on the River Tillingbourne
in Shalford
, near Guildford
, Surrey
, England
. Since 1932 it has been owned by the National Trust
.
The Domesday Book
records a mill being present on the site in 1086 - one of the five mills recorded as part of the great manor of Bramley
. In the 15th century, the mill was owned by 'John atte Lee'. In the 16th by Sir Edmund Walsingham and in 1599 it was sold to George Austen.
The present timber-framed building, built around 1750, originally housed two separate mills. The eastern half of the mill ceased operation in the 19th century and has been convered to residential use. The western half remained in operation until 1914 and is now open to the public.
In the early 1930s the mill was acquired from the local landowner by a group known as 'Ferguson's Gang
' and they then donated it to the National Trust. In return, the trust created a hideaway in the mill for the gang's meetings – designed by architect John Macgregor, AKA 'The Artichoke'.
The mill opens to the public on Wednesdays and Sundays during the summer months.
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
located on the River Tillingbourne
River Tillingbourne
The River Tillingbourne runs along the south side of the North Downs and joins the River Wey at Guildford. Its source is near Tilling Springs to the north of Leith Hill at and it runs through Friday Street, Abinger Hammer, Gomshall, Shere, Albury, Chilworth and Shalford. The source is a...
in Shalford
Shalford, Surrey
Shalford is a village in Surrey, England, situated on the busy A281 Horsham road immediately south of Guildford. It has a railway station which is between Guildford and Dorking on the North Downs Line....
, near Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Since 1932 it has been owned by the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
.
The Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
records a mill being present on the site in 1086 - one of the five mills recorded as part of the great manor of Bramley
Bramley, Surrey
Bramley is a village and civil parish about three miles south of Guildford in the Borough of Waverley in Surrey, south east England. With a population of c.3,300 most of the parish lies in the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. There is evidence of iron age settlement in the area,...
. In the 15th century, the mill was owned by 'John atte Lee'. In the 16th by Sir Edmund Walsingham and in 1599 it was sold to George Austen.
The present timber-framed building, built around 1750, originally housed two separate mills. The eastern half of the mill ceased operation in the 19th century and has been convered to residential use. The western half remained in operation until 1914 and is now open to the public.
In the early 1930s the mill was acquired from the local landowner by a group known as 'Ferguson's Gang
Ferguson's Gang
Ferguson's Gang was an anonymous and somewhat enigmatic group that raised funds for the National Trust during the period between the late 1920s and the outbreak of the Second World War...
' and they then donated it to the National Trust. In return, the trust created a hideaway in the mill for the gang's meetings – designed by architect John Macgregor, AKA 'The Artichoke'.
The mill opens to the public on Wednesdays and Sundays during the summer months.