The Winchester City Mill is a restored water mill

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 :...

 situated on the River Itchen

River Itchen, Hampshire

The River Itchen is a river in Hampshire, England. It flows from mid-Hampshire to join with Southampton Water below the Itchen Bridge in the city of Southampton. The river has a total length of , and is noted as one of England's - if not one of the World's - premier chalk streams for fly fishing,...

 in the centre of the ancient English

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...

 city of Winchester

Winchester

Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...

. The mill is 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 mill was first recorded, milling corn

Cereal

Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...

, 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...

 of 1086. The mill was last rebuilt in 1744 and remained in use until the early 1900s. The mill was then used as a laundry

Laundry

Laundry is a noun that refers to the act of washing clothing and linens, the place where that washing is done, and/or that which needs to be, is being, or has been laundered...

 until 1928 when it was offered for sale. In order to prevent its demolition, a group of benefactors bought the mill and presented it to the National Trust. In 1932 the mill was leased to the Youth Hostels Association

YHA

YHA may refer to:* YHA Australia, a youth hostel association in Australia* Youth Hostels Association , a youth hostel charity in the United Kingdom* Youth Hostel Association of New Zealand, a youth hostel association in New Zealand...

 for use as a hostel

Hostel

Hostels provide budget oriented, sociable accommodation where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed, in a dormitory and share a bathroom, lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex, although private rooms may also be available...

, a usage that continued until recently.

In 2004, a 12 year restoration program came to a successful conclusion, and after a hiatus of at least 90 years the mill again milled flour by water power. The water mill can be seen working daily during the summer months. The mill building also houses a National Trust shop.

External links

• National Trust web pages on Winchester City Mill.

.