Temple Mill Island facts for kids
Temple Mill Island is a small piece of land surrounded by water in the River Thames in England. It's located near the town of Marlow and just below Temple Lock. This island is on the southern side of the river, in the county of Berkshire, close to the village of Hurley.
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What is Temple Mill Island?
Temple Mill Island gets its name from the three old watermills that once stood there. These mills were very important long ago. They were used to work with metals like copper and brass, shaping them into useful items. Today, the island looks very different. It has modern homes and a place where boats can dock, called a marina.
The Old Mills and Their Purpose
The watermills on Temple Mill Island used the power of the river to operate. They had large wheels that turned when the water flowed against them. This movement powered machinery inside the mills. The main job of these mills was "beating" copper and brass. This means they would hammer the metals to make them flat or shape them into things like kettles and pans.
A Famous Writer's View
A well-known writer named Daniel Defoe wrote about the mills on Temple Mill Island. He lived a long time ago, from 1660 to 1731. Defoe is famous for writing the book Robinson Crusoe. He also wrote a travel book called A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain between 1724 and 1727.
Defoe's Description of the Mills
In his book, Daniel Defoe mentioned the "three very remarkable mills, called Temple-Mills." He said they were used for making "Battery-work," which meant brass kettles and pans of all kinds. These mills were quite successful for a while.
However, Defoe also wrote about something called a "bubble" in the year 1720. This refers to a time when many people got very excited about investing money in certain businesses. They hoped to make a lot of money quickly. But often, these businesses were not as strong as they seemed. When the excitement faded, the value of these investments dropped very fast, and many people lost their money. The Temple Mills, like many other businesses at that time, were caught up in this "bubble" and faced difficulties.
