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Restoring
the Mill 1968-1982 How
the Mill works Visiting
A
History of Woodbridge Tide Mill.
1170
- 1564 Canons, Kings and Queens.
A
mill has stood where the Tide Mill now stands since
the twelfth century. The first reference to a mill
here occurs in a document dated 1170, giving one
Baldwin of Ufford easier access to the building.
During the middle ages, the mill was owned by the
Augustinian Canons, housed in their Priory in the
centre of town. We can be sure that they exercised
their 'soke rights', compelling their tenants to send
their corn to the mill to be ground and collecting
their fixed portion. In 1340, a survey for a tax voted
to Edward III valued the tithe of the mill at three
shillings per annum.
19th
Century Water colour.
Two hundred years later, at The Bishop of Norwich's
visitation, the expense of repairing and maintaining
the mill was one convenient excuse to explain the
poverty of the Priory! The sea-water mill -
molendinium aquaticum marinum - was said to be in a
ruined state. Woodbridge Priory was one of the first
to be dissolved by Henry VIII, who then became the
first royal owner of Woodbridge Tide Mill. He quickly
sold it to Sir John Wingfield, a member of the local
gentry. Sir John died without issue and the mill
reverted to the Crown. In 1564 Queen Elizabeth granted
it, as part of the manor of Woodbridge Late Priory, to
Thomas Seckford, one of her court officials and
trusted legal servants. The cost? £764.8s.4d. There
cannot be many mills in Britain which can claim to
have had two distinguished monarchs among their former
owners.
1564
- 1939
The
Tide Mill appears to have remained in the hands of
the Seckford Family until 1672. In that year
Dorothy Seckford died, the niece of Thomas. It was
the end of the Seckford line. We have clear
records of the ownership of the mill from that
time forward. The mill remained in the hands of
the Bass and Burward families. Jonathan Bass's
widow, Bridget, sold to her son-in-law, Anthony
Burward, a merchant, in 1691, for five shillings,
'the water-mill, mill house with the mill stones
and furniture, the floodgates, mill-pond, causeway
sea-banks, and othetr banks, creeks, salts,
waters, streams and feedings.' Anthony passed on
the mill to his son, also Anthony, in 1712, in
return for an annuity of £70 paid by the son to
the father. Let's hope it kept him well in his old
age.
The Burwards owned the mill until 1792 when it was
sold to the Cutting family, coal merchants and
farmers. It was at this time that the present
building was constructed. Improvements to the quay
and additional warehouse space were also made. In
January 1808 when the Cuttings decided to sell the
mill they advertised it as followings in 'The Bury
Post.
To
be sold - situated at Woodbridge. A spacious quay
with sufficient draft for ships of 100 tons and a
capital and well constructed and much admired new
tide mill, 3 stories high, stage area = 42 ft.
Divided into stowages for 700 quarters of wheat +
flour mill, cylinder, dressing machine, flour
bins. Water wheel - 20ft diameter, 3 pairs French
stones 4ft 6 ins diameter, and one pair of French
stones 4ft diameter. The mill will cut 12 to 14
loads of corn per week.
Restoring
Woodbridge Tide Mill, 1968 - 1982
After
years of progressive deterioration, the tide
mill was near to collapse. The foundation
brickwork was cracked and decayed and the
corner most vulnerable to the elements, at the
river side of the wheelhouse end, was slowly
slipping into the estuary. The bases of the
main wall posts and the timber sole plate
resting on these uncertain foundations had
been attacked by wet-rot. The main posts were
bowing outwards by as much as nine inches in
places as the weight of the roof pressed
heavily on the timber frame.
Uneven loading, especially after 1957, when
for a decade the mill was little more than a
storehouse, had caused twisting of the frame
so that many of the key joints had moved
apart. The most surprising aspect was the
discovery that 'solid' 9in. by 9in. posts were
in some places hollow. For many years rats had
gnawed a pattern of runs in them, with nests
at various junctions. Emergency concrete
repairs had not deterred them.
Not
only was the basic timber frame in a state
of serious decay; doors and windows needed
total replacement; floor beams and boards
were unsafe, the latter worn thin by
steel-tyred trucks and sack barrows. The
river-side outhouse was derelict and the
lucam framing rotten and dangerous. The
outside walls needed complete reboarding
and much of the rood strengthening and
retiling. The timbers throughout had been
attacked by woodworm.
The first and most pressing need was to
stabilise the structure and prevent
further deterioration especially through
tidal erosion. Beneath the ground floor a
concrete slab was laid on the mud to keep
out rising tides and a rough concrete
apron was also laid on the shore in front
of the mill to protect the base wall from
erosion.
The
foundation wall brickwork was
extensively repaired, strengthened and
its level raised. On top of this a 9in.
by 9in. reinforced concrete ring beam
was formed which runs continuously
around the mill, ensuring that the
building rests evenly on the foundations
and acting as a lateral tie. The new
sole plate is fixed to the ring beam and
the extra height of this foundation wall
will keep out the high tides.
How
the Tide Mill Works
Tide
mills will be found along shallow
creeks, usually some miles from
the coast, safe from the buffeting
waves of the sea but well within
reach of the tide. Behind the mill
there will be a pond. Some mills
have created these ponds by
creating a bank right across the
estuary, often capturing stream or
river water as well as tidal
water. Carew in Pembrokeshire is
one of these and Eling Mill near
Southampton. At Woodbridge a pond
of over seven acres was
constructed.
The incoming tide opened lock-type
gates in the banks of the pond and
filled the pond. As the tide fell,
the first out-flowing water closd
the gates and they were then held
firmly in position by the pressure
of the trapped or impounded water.
When the tide had fallen
suiciently - that is when the
water wheel was completely clear
of tidal water, then the miller
opened the sluice gates at the
mill race and the released water,
rushing out, turned the wheel and
therefore the machinery. The mill
worked for approximately two hours
either side of low tide. The
miller's day depended upon the
movement of the tide and his
working hours were quite
irregular. No two consecutive days
would be the same for him. The
variation of tides at different
seasons added to his difficulties.
The sluice gates were so
constructed as to allow breastshot
operation on a high tide or early
in the milling process and then
undershot when both sluices would
be raised to use up every last
drop of available water.
Visiting
Woodbridge Tide Mill
We
are always delighted to
meet visitors to the Mill.
The Tide Mill may be found
in the town of Woodbridge,
in the county of Suffolk,
United Kingdom. Access by
road and rail is simple.
Woodbridge stands on the
A12, the road that links
London and Lowestoft and
on the rail that links
Ipswich with Lowestoft. As
fine a way to approach our
mill as any is to sail up
the River Deben.
Woodbridge stands about
eight miles from the mouth
of the river, at
Felixstowe Ferry. The
accompanying map locates
the mill when you have
found Woodbridge.
Times
of opening for the year
2004 are as follows:
Easter
- Saturday to Monday.
April
weekends.
Every
day from 1 May to 30
September.
Weekends
in October.
11.00
am to 5.00 pm.
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