This a ‘dynamic artwork’ entitled ‘+, 2015 and represents the milling heritage of the Holybrook.
John Man’s map of 1798 (available to view in Reading local studies library) shows three mills in this vicinity where the Oracle shopping centre now stands and its surrounds. The shopping centre was named after the Oracle workhouse which once stood on this site and had closed by mid 19th century. The Holy Brook provided the power for the water wheels in this area.
Slightly to the south and on the river Kennet, a mill likely to have been St Giles Mill or the Town Mill, was mentioned in Domesday. Excavations pre Oracle shopping centre found evidence of a post c.1308 mill on Mill Lane, the largest of 5 corn mills that once existed thereabouts. There was a major expansion of the St Giles mill between 1750 and 1850, which was operated by water until it was converted to steam in 1879. The mill remained until 1902 when it was demolished to make way for the Reading Corporation Tramways depot. During the excavations pre shopping centre archaeologists also found evidence of pounding and fulling mills.
They also found: ‘a twelfth-century gear wheel from the medieval mill. It is a wooden ring perforated around its side edges to provide for the insertion of wooden pegs, which protruded parallel to the axle connecting the water wheel to the gear wheel. As the water wheel turned the gear on the axle, the pegs protruding from the gear wheel engaged with a lantern pinion on a second, vertical axle connected to the millstone. In this way the rotary movement of the vertical water wheel could turn the horizontal millstone. A single wooden paddle from the medieval waterwheel was also found, with the smaller flat piece of timber (called a ‘start’) by which it was mounted on the wheel.’(Mildred Cookson).
See Blakes Lock Museum entry where this wheel may now be viewed.
To the west of the St Giles Mill was the Reading waterworks company mill which lifted water from the river Kennet to supply houses in the town.