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Smugglers’ Mills and Nefarious Thrills

Throughout the ages, the role of the miller has been subject to all sorts of stories and stereotypes: millers have been slandered, satirised, respected and romanticised all in equal measure. Langstone Mill, Havant. Photo: Ashok Vaidya Oft-times in literature, the miller has been the recipient of a similar treatment to smugglers and pirates, his contemporary…

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Gems of the Archive: Milling Miscreants

Have you ever heard the phrase ‘an honest miller has hairy palms’? Or perhaps the old expression ‘safe as a thief in a mill’? Or maybe you’ve read The Miller’s Tale by Geoffrey Chaucer, and are familiar with the less-than-trustworthy character of the miller who was not only “a quarrelsome swaggerer”, “arrogant” and “sly”, but…

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The Mills Archive receives a grant for our project, Mill Makers: The Wright Records

We are absolutely thrilled to announce that we have been awarded a grant of £9,944 from the National Manuscripts Conservation Trust for our new project, Mill Makers: The Wright Records. Here at the Archive we hold 26 millwrighting collections, containing unique and vital records of Britain’s milling heritage created by the skilled men who were…

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Power to the People: another successful Heritage Open Day!

Following the resounding success of last September’s event, the Mills Archive was delighted to once again participate in Heritage Open Days, England’s largest festival of history and culture. Each September, thousands of volunteers across the country invite the public to visit over 5,000 events to celebrate England’s fantastic heritage. The festival keeps expanding, and this…

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The Mills Archive attends the QAVS Presentation Ceremony

After a very exciting summer of being named as a recipient of the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service and enjoying all the ensuing celebrations, this week the day finally arrived for us to officially receive the much-coveted award! On Tuesday, nine smartly-dressed representatives from the Archive, including staff, volunteers, and one of our nominators, Dennis…

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