Whitchurch Silk Mill
Encyclopedia
Whitchurch Silk Mill is a watermill
on the River Test
, located in the town of Whitchurch
, Hampshire
, England
. The mill was constructed in 1815 on a plot of land called Frog Island. The mill is probably on the same site as one of the four mills recorded in the Domesday Book
. Originally it was a fulling mill (part of the finishing process of cloth weaving
). Some years later, during the 1830s, it was bought by the Hide family who changed its operation to weave silk
.
The mill remains in operation, and the building is now owned by the Hampshire Buildings Preservation Trust and leased to a dedicated trust to ensure preservation.
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 :...
on the River Test
River Test
The River Test is a river in Hampshire, England. The river has a total length of 40 miles and it flows through downland from its source near Ashe, 10 km to the west of Basingstoke , to the sea at the head of Southampton Water...
, located in the town of Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Hampshire
Whitchurch is a town in Hampshire, England. It is on the River Test, from Newbury, Berkshire, from Winchester, miles from Andover and miles from Basingstoke. Much of the town is a Conservation Area. Because of the amount of wildlife in and near the river, parts of the town are designated as...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, 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...
. The mill was constructed in 1815 on a plot of land called Frog Island. The mill is probably on the same site as one of the four mills recorded in 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...
. Originally it was a fulling mill (part of the finishing process of cloth weaving
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
). Some years later, during the 1830s, it was bought by the Hide family who changed its operation to weave silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
.
The mill remains in operation, and the building is now owned by the Hampshire Buildings Preservation Trust and leased to a dedicated trust to ensure preservation.