Hello again everyone! After a week of learning the ropes around The Mills Archive, I am really starting to appreciate the real importance and genuine enthusiasm people have for mills.
Just this week, we have had two people drop in to the offices to see the kind of work we do, and are eager to contribute their own stories and material to our ever-growing archives. One of them was a very interested archaeologist with a background of research on Middle Eastern mills, and the other had a more personal enquiry about a mill within the family. I found it fascinating that the work we do here can touch people so personally.
Also, this week marks my official use of the new AtoM catalogue! After scanning hundreds of press cuttings onto my computer, I have now started uploading images on to the catalogue. There is still a lot of information that we will keep adding to it, but feel free to check out our progress here. Personally, I love the new look and the sleek design! The leap in the software also makes it comparably better to the old catalogue, so hopefully all you researchers out there will enjoy using it as much as I have.
Part of my role of uploading the Press Cuttings Collection online involves reading the articles and providing a little description of them. This has allowed me to learn about some incredible stories about mills, but it has also allowed me to gain some insight on other areas to do with archiving of press cuttings.
Some of my favourite stories I have read this week include restoration efforts at Nyetimber Mill and Burton Mill. According to articles from ‘The Post’ and ‘The Observer’, Nyetimber Mill in Pagham was sold in the 60s and in 1981 a team from the Singleton Weald and Downland Open Air Museum rescued its machinery and the mill was converted into a housing scheme.
I found the story of Burton Mill in Sussex particularly interesting because the restoration work was carried out fairly quickly, and also because the objective was to make the mill functional again. In 1978 an article appeared in ‘The West Sussex Gazette’ about plans to restore the mill, and in 1979 there was a follow-up story describing the success of the plans, and the involvement of mechanics from the Air Engineering School at H.M.S Daedalus as well. However, the literature student in me was particularly drawn to the restoration work done at the mill at Bateman’s – Rudyard Kipling’s last home. According to various Sussex publications, Kipling restored and repurposed the water mill at Bateman’s to provide electricity for his house in 1903.
In 1969, restoration for the mill was announced, as well as plans to convert it into a museum. In 1975, the restoration was completed, and the water mill was even used for its original purpose again – grinding flour! You can check out what it looks like today here.
In addition to fascinating stories behind mills in the press, I learned something new about newspaper editorial practices. While sorting through and scanning articles, I must have missed it, but when uploading items on to AtoM, I suddenly realised I had read the exact same article twice! It turns out that a story about a fire at Barcombe Mill in Sussex may have been reprinted in the morning and evening editions of the same publication. Although one of the articles contained a large picture of the burning mill and a different title, the body of text for the two was reproduced word-for-word. It is interesting how stories can be recycled, even given a lack of additional details to report.
All in all, I have had an exciting second week here at The Mills Archive. I have met a lot of new faces, and am becoming familiar with our regular volunteers. It is also lovely to see new people interested in our work joining us as Friends and Heritage Partners, and I hope our family of enthusiasts keeps growing. If you have your own interesting mill story to share, please feel free to do so in the comments below, and hopefully we can track it through our records and dig up some fascinating information!