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Turvey Mill
Turvey Mill as it is today (June 2011).
Click the picture to enlarge.
Many mills must have stood on the River Ouse at Turvey, we can only hazard a guess but about 6 would seem likely.
There were 26 mills on the Ouse in Domesday book, including at least one at Turvey.
The interior of the mill in its heyday. Click the picture to enlarge.
Fire at Turvey Mill!
A terrible fire in 1885 caused much damage to the mill, leaving little more than a chimney. This survived until 1935 when the Territorial Army demolished it.
The picture above is of the mill, gutted after the fire.
From 1953 to 1965 the Mill was managed by Mr Dashwood who worked for Mr Melhuish's
company -
Here is an aerial photo of the mill taken at this time.
Jonah and Eve
A statue called Jonah stands in the mill pond. He was placed there on 15 April 1844. He originally stood in the grounds of Ashridge House, Hertfordshire.
He now has a companion known to many locals as Eve (far right photo) However Eve is clearly a man in a three cornered hat! She was added in 1953.
This photo on the left dates from the early twenties when Jonah stood further out of the water.
Jonah
Eve
Wetting the Wheels
The still water by the mill, near Turvey Bridge, has gentle slopes leading down to the banks. These slopes were for carts to be wheeled down so that the wheels could be wetted.
Why? Well, cart wheels were made from a number of pieces of wood, carefully slotted
together. Over time, as the wood naturally dried out, the wood would shrink and
the joints become loose -
This also was a useful technique for metal rimmed wheels, as the natural drying out shrinkage would cause them to become loose if the wood was not periodically wetted.
When Jonah Fell Over
An anonymous poem about an incidence in February 1876.
But well I remember the day he fell down,
As it happened he broke not his crown.
Some friends went to help him and wheeled him away,
And he was a while at the Abbey did stay.
They gave him a cleaning and structural repair,
Two year they kept him abiding up there.
They placed him again on much firmer ground
And now on the bank, our Jonah is found.
He looks an old figure, quite ancient you know,
And stands where the water all around him doth flow.
But if you see him all standing alone
Turvey’s main attraction, but made only of stone.
Over the years the mill has been a...
Flour mill
Food store in World War I
Animal foodstuffs mill
Potato crisp factory
Multitherm factory
Luxury flats
The Miller
The miller ground the wheat for both the villagers and the nearby farms. He also received payment for fishing rights for the river. He was well known for his big, salty eels which he caught in traps set in the river near the mill.
One of the millers was called Mr Sevens -
Turvey Mill Today
A current (2011) resident of the Mill tells me that there are 6 houses in it now. Three at each end and 4 flats in the tall part.
John Whitworth and Turvey Mill
The current mill was taken over by John Battams Whitworth (c.1852-
After it burnt down in 1885, he moved to Little Irchester, on the outskirts of Wellingborough and built the huge steam roller mill there in 1886. He worked this mill with his brothers Herbert and Newton.
This mill is still in use today.
See the Whitworths company website for a picture and more information on JB Whitworth.