Ifield Water Mill facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ifield Water Mill |
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The mill from the northeast, May 2023
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| Location | Hyde Drive, Ifield West, Crawley, West Sussex RH11 0PL, United Kingdom |
| Built | 1817 (present building) |
| Built for | Thomas Durrant |
| Architectural style(s) | Weatherboarded Vernacular |
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Listed Building – Grade II
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| Official name: Ifield Water Mill | |
| Designated | 21 June 1948 |
| Reference no. | 1207630 |
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The Ifield Water Mill is an old watermill in Ifield, a part of Crawley, West Sussex, England. It was built in the 1800s. This mill stands where an even older flour mill once was. Before that, an iron forge (a place where metal is shaped) operated here. The mill stopped being used in the 1930s. Later, the local council bought the land. Volunteers then worked hard to fix the mill. They made it work again. The mill and a house nearby are special historic buildings. They are called listed buildings.
Contents
The Mill's Long History
The area around Ifield was once a thick forest. Small streams flow through the land. These streams are part of the River Mole. By the 1200s, at least one mill was already in the village. We don't know who owned it then.
From Iron Forge to Corn Mill
An iron forge was on this spot by the late 1500s. The local lord owned the part of Ifield Brook here. This brook flows from a furnace at Bewbush, about 1 mile (1.6 km) away. In the 1500s, the brook was dammed to create a mill pond. This pond provided power for the forge. By 1606, there was a house, barn, mill, and mill pond here. A rich family, the Middletons, rented the forge. They owned many ironworks in Sussex.
The iron industry in Sussex quickly declined. The Bewbush furnace closed in 1642. This was because all the trees had been cut down for fuel. The next year, during the English Civil War, soldiers destroyed the iron industry's remains. The Ifield forge site was cleared. A corn mill was built in its place. It was definitely working by 1660. A local Quaker, William Garton, ran it. He was often put in prison for his religious beliefs.
Growing and Changing
At first, the mill was small. But as milling improved, it grew. It was rebuilt in 1683. The Middleton family now owned the mill completely. In 1715, Leonard Gale, another rich local, bought it. By 1759, it had new owners. For 50 years, different groups of people owned it.
By this time, it was the biggest corn mill in the area. When Napoleon planned to invade the UK, a survey checked all mills. Ifield Mill could make 16 sacks of flour and 120 loaves of bread every day. Other local mills could only make four sacks.
A New Owner and Rebuilding
The mill stopped being used in the 1810s. A businessman named Abraham Goldsmid bought it in 1809. It stayed unused for eight years. Then, in 1817, Thomas Durrant bought it for £1,200. He was a miller from Merstham. Durrant was the first owner who also worked as the miller. Under his ownership, the mill was completely rebuilt.
Rebuilding the Mill
The old building from 1683 was taken down. The mill you see today was built in its place. A special stone tablet from 1683 was saved. It had the initials of Thomas Middleton and his wife Mary. This tablet was put on the outside of the new building. Thomas Durrant spent £3,500 on the new mill.
Soon after, the mill had problems with its water supply. The brook's flow became weaker. In 1848, the railway line to Horsham was built. It cut the mill pond in half. This made the water power even weaker. Also, a competing windmill was built nearby in 1837. Other millers also started working in Ifield.
The mill slowly declined through the 1800s and 1900s. Even a family of millers, the Hardings, struggled. A steam engine was added to help, but the water power was often too weak. The mill stopped working by 1927. It was put up for sale in 1934. It was described as "a gentleman's residence with a picturesque disused water mill." This showed that the mill was no longer important for grinding corn.
Bringing the Mill Back to Life
The mill stood empty for many years. Crawley Borough Council bought it in 1974. They were buying land for new houses. The council let a group of volunteers try to restore the mill. It was in very bad shape. Work began on June 15, 1974.
The Restoration Challenge
Every part of the mill was damaged. Trees had grown into the building. They pushed the roof out of place. The main wooden beams holding the building were rotting. A wall had fallen inwards. The water wheel was stuck in the mud.
The work took eight years. This was much longer than the three years they first thought. But large donations helped pay for new parts inside. Three staircases, the inside wall coverings, and the wooden floors were all replaced. All the windows were put back to their original design. Outside, the old wooden boards were removed. A waterproof layer was put on. Many of the old boards were replaced. But the mill still looked the same as it did originally. The roof was also fixed to stop more damage.
Replacing the main wooden supports was very hard. The whole building had to be lifted up. Hydraulic jacks held it in the air. This allowed new timbers to be put in place. Working on the water wheel was also difficult. It took several years. Parts of the old wheel were used in the new oak and steel one. The walls supporting the wheel were completely rebuilt.
A sluice gate was built across the mill pond. A water control system was brought from another old mill. The water wheel is a special "overshot" type. It is the largest of its kind in Sussex. It weighs about 6 tons. It is 11 feet (3.4 meters) wide. It can turn 8 to 15 times per minute. This depends on how much water is flowing.
Volunteer Power
Even though the work was huge, volunteers did almost all of it. They mostly worked on weekends. No professional engineers or builders were hired. The wooden parts of the waterwheel rotted after about 30 years. So, a new steel waterwheel was built. This was done with help from the Lottery Heritage Fund.
Efforts have also been made to help nature around the mill pond. In 1976, the northern part of the pond was drained. Trees started to grow there. The southern part was like a "desert" for nature. But by 1979, over 30,000 fish were put back in. Birds also returned quickly. A study found 58 different types of birds. The soil is good, which helps plants grow well.
Mill Design and Look
Ifield Water Mill is a tall building. It has three floors. The outside is covered in weatherboard. The ground floor is made of brick. The two upper floors are made of timber. The slate roof has eaves that stick out. The mill hoist sticks out from the north side. This is where sacks of grain were lifted. During restoration, this part was found to be very rusty.
What's Happening Today
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Ifield Water Mill was made a Grade II listed building on June 21, 1948. This means it's a very important historic building. It is one of many listed buildings in Crawley. The Borough Council still owns the mill. But the Crawley Museum Society now leases it. Before the main Crawley Museum opened, the mill was used as a temporary museum.
The mill house and a cottage were also bought by the council. They are now rented out to people. The mill house is a 16th-century half-timbered building. It has been updated. It is now a public house (a pub). It has an original tiled hipped roof. Much of the building was changed in the 1900s. But it was made to look like the old structure. It was also listed as Grade II on May 1, 1974. The cottage is not listed separately. It was built in the 1500s or 1600s as a barn. It was changed into a home in the 1930s.
An artist named Denys Ovenden painted the water mill in 2015. His painting showed a scene from 1848. It showed the railway crossing the millpond on a wooden bridge. This painting was later used on a special Royal Mail postage stamp.
