Hi everyone,
At the beginning of this year I recently purchased a house with the remains of a tower mill in the garden. I have been doing as much research into the mill as possible as I want to incorparate as much of the history into the mill as possible into its restoration. I have found the following script which is very informative but wondered if anyone has any further information/documentation or photos?
"This beautiful mill was built in 1839 to replace a post mill shown on Hodakinson 's 1783 map (but not on Kirby's 1736 map) at Grid Ref. 165,630. It is said that the post mill collapsed while it was being raised; at any rate the new mill, dated over the door
C.C.
1839
(for Charles Chevalier, the owner) was built by the up and coming John Whitmore, who was just establishing himself as the foremost millwright in the area. It was probably Whitmore's third tower mill, and was stouter than his slender, tall Buttrum's Mill, Woodbridge, of c.1836. It was said to have cost £2000 to build and from the outset had four patent sails, a fantail, three pairs of French stones and a flour dresser.
It was run by the Chevalier family, of Aspall Hall, with Robert Bolton as mill manager. It was advertised for sale several times in the late 1840's and was eventually sold in 1850 to James Smith. In 1853 the millers are listed as 'Smith & Knights’ and by 1868 Williarn F. Smith had taken over. In 1883 his widow was continuing the business, using both wind and steam power but by 1892 she had sold out to Robert D. Cooper. It then passed to George Cooper & Sons from at least 1896, who also ran the large watermill, Hawks Mill, at Needham Market where they continued until the late 1930's. By 1916 Debenham mill was too old fashioned for them and it had been sold to its last miller, Samuel Webster, who also worked Framsden post mill. He worked it until c.1935, latterly using only two sails, grinding oats and barley for local farmers. The flour machine had not been used since 1908. During the Great War it was under Government control and had the misfortune to be tail-winded on 12th July 1918, the cap being taken off and the sails wrecked.( A mill is tail-winded when the wind is directly behind the sails. In this situation the fantail will not work.) The Government paid £100 towards its rebuilding, which was accomplished using the old cap and winding gear with the sails, brakewheel, windshaft and wallower from Preston tower mill, near Lavenham (built by the second finest exponent of tower mills in Suffolk, William Bear). This fusion of the finest in Suffolk tower mills was carried out by a Mr. Baker, and the mill set to work again on 21st June 1921.
It was left alone for years and when pulled down to a two storey stump in December 1962, although claimed to be 'dangerous' Was in fine condition, with fantail and two sails still largely intact. The stump still survives.
As built it had an iron mortise brakewheel, iron brake and iron wallower as at Woodbridge, an iron great spurwheel under the second floor, driving three pairs of French stones via mortise nuts, a mortise crown wheel under the third floor driving the sack hoist and dresser, plus a further pair of stones on the ground floor driven by auxiliary engine. The Preston gear differed in having a composite brakewheel with iron hub, iron arms and segment teeth, with a wood rim and brake, driving a mortise wallower which had obviously been on a wooden upright shaft at Preston as a cast iron spacer was required to hang it at Debenham. There was a stone crane, and the spacious bin floor could hold 70 coombs of wheat.
It was 23ft. inside diameter at the base, and 14ft. wide at the curb, being 43ft. in height to the curb, with five floors. The total height was 57ft., with a l2ft. diameter fantail. It is said that 14 windmills could be seen working from the mill in the 1880's."
