Abbey River facts for kids
The Abbey River is a small waterway in Chertsey, Surrey, England. It's like a side channel of the big River Thames. You can find it in the northern part of Chertsey, in an area with lots of green spaces and water. This L-shaped river flows around an island called Laleham Burway. On this island, you'll find a golf course, a motorway, and a water treatment plant.
The Abbey River starts where the Thames bends at Penton Hook Island, near Staines-upon-Thames. It then flows back into the Thames near Chertsey Lock, which you can see from Chertsey Bridge. The Environment Agency is planning to build new channels nearby to help with flood control, similar to the Jubilee River.
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A River's Story: History and Purpose
This river is about 3.2 kilometers (2 miles) long. It was also known by other names like Oxley or Oaklake Mill River. It was dug way back in the 11th century by the Abbot of Chertsey Abbey. The main reason for digging it was to power a mill close to the Abbey and to fill their many fish ponds.
The Abbey River, along with the Thames, completely surrounds Laleham Burway. This land was once called Abbey Mead and belonged to Chertsey Abbey, which was founded in the 7th century during the Anglo-Saxon period. The river helped drain the land, making it better for farming, and it also acted as a mill race (a channel that directs water to a mill wheel).
For many centuries, the large island formed by the river was rented out to farmers. They used it to raise and sell horses and cattle. By the 18th and 19th centuries, the river was less about grinding grain and more about draining water from pastures. It also added beauty to the houses and farms nearby, like Abbey Chase.
Today, Laleham Burway is home to Laleham Golf Course, some park homes, riverside houses, and a water treatment plant. This plant can produce a huge amount of drinking water every day (about 60 million liters!). For over a thousand years, this area was the largest island in the non-tidal part of the River Thames.
River Flow and Wildlife
The Abbey River's flow is not as strong as it used to be. It's shallower now and has several small dams (weirs). These weirs help to keep flooding in the upper parts of the river, protecting the built-up areas of Chertsey during normal floods. However, during very severe floods, like in the winter of 2013-2014, the Thames can still flood up to Chertsey Bridge.
The Environment Agency has noticed that the Abbey River doesn't help with flood control as much as it once did. Its flow is much less than in medieval times when it was a powerful mill race. Because of this reduced capacity, the Environment Agency plans to build new drainage channels nearby. These new channels might slightly increase the Abbey River's flow, but the main new channel will cross its existing island.
The Abbey River is a part of the Thames, so it's believed to have similar water quality and types of animals and plants as the main river.
The Abbey Mill
The Abbey Mill was one of many mills owned by Chertsey Abbey. The Abbey was very wealthy from farming. These "abbey mills" were important because they often had a local monopoly, meaning they were the only place where local farmers could grind their grain. In 1535, the Abbey's annual profit was recorded as £659. Later, in 1608, two watermills on the river were known as the Oaklake Mylles.
In 1809, there was a plan to use the Abbey River as a navigation channel for boats. The mill owners and the City of London Corporation thought it could help protect areas like Chertsey and Shepperton from floods and keep water levels deep enough. However, the City of London decided to build its own shorter route, which led to the creation of Chertsey Lock and Weir.
Much of the Abbey River is surrounded by trees, and it's never more than about 980 meters (half a mile) from the main River Thames. In 1861, the land where the Abbey once stood was bought by Mr. Bartrop. This purchase included the "Oxlake or Okelake mills" and "a small river or brook known as the Abbey River or the Bargewater."
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