The Old Mill

There has been a mill on this site since medieval times – “Perie” mill was mentioned in Domesday Book – and it was powered by the waters of the village brook. Roughly half of what is now the Mill Pond Meadow Conservation Area was a pond, with the north side bordering the stream. Water was held in the mill pond by a brick dam and the abutments can still be seen from the footbridge. When the mill pond was full, the water could be discharged to provide enough power to turn the mill wheel and grind the corn.

Over the centuries ownership of the watermill passed through the hands of several families until it was purchased by the Duke of Grafton in 1891. When the Grafton Estate was sold in 1920, the mill was on sale for £525.

Around 1900, the water-powered wheel was replaced by a steam-powered engine (hence the high chimney visible on the old mill building) and in 1930 an oil-powered engine was installed.

The existing building was constructed in the mid-19th century and the mill continued to grind corn until the 1950s. It was converted into three houses in the 1980s.