The Mills at Thomastown
For our convenience let us refer to the 3 mills which up to their closure in the 1960s and owned at that time and for many years previously by the Pilsworth Family as
(A) Grennan Mill--the biggest mill situated in Mill St.,
(B) The Island Mill-- further upstream on the same bank
(C)The Little Mill at Arland’s Inch on the opposite bank.
Between the latter 2 mills is The Weir or The Gap which in recent times has fallen into a state of disrepair and which is the matter of our concern.
Grennan Mill
We learn from W.J. Pilsworth’s book “History of Thomastown and District” (Second Edition) was in existence in the very early days of the
18th Century as it was, in 1740, leased by one James Bull and, apart from one short interval, in the hands of the Bull Family up to 1850.
Then on the death of William Bull it passed to his daughter and her husband, Robert Pilsworth, and from then on remained in the Pilsworth Family. The water power for this mill would have been
obtained from the build up of water generated by the aforementioned Weir and further upstream by a Mill Race created at a point in the river nowadays known as The Big Mill Fork--a Mill Race which
through a series of Sluice Gates supplied a force of water to turn the wheels of industry and at a later date to generate electricity for the mill.
The Upper Mills (Island Mill)
We are told was erected in 1823 by the Innes Family. The mill was badly damaged by fire (as recorded in Mr. Pilsworth’s book) in 1867 and never got going properly again.
It was purchased by the Pilsworth family in 1880 and after this was used as stores.
The Little Mill
At Arland’s Inch, we are told was worked by a Mr. Bowker in the early 19th. Century.
I presume it was this gentleman who gave his name to “Bowker’s Pond” just upstream of this mill.
The mill passed into the possession of the Innes family. They constructed a wooden bridge or gangway from the Arland’s Inch Mill across the river to The Island Mill across which bags of grain were wheeled on truck cars. This bridge was washed away by a severe flood. The Pilsworth Family also purchased this mill, again circa 1880, and it also was used as a store.
Both of the latter mills would have been operated on the supply of water directed towards them respectively by the arms of the weir and by the sluice gates through which this water passed.
A reference in Mr. Pilsworth’s Book to flooding in the locality is interesting. He tells us that the original bridge at Thomastown, a short distance downstream from the mills, was completely destroyed by the flood of 1763 and that the replacement bridge was severely damaged by a flood in1792. This was seemingly before the erection of the 2 latter mills. Whether the present weir was in position or not, at that time, is not clear.
The present Thomastown Bridge was damaged by the flood of 1947 when the weir was very definitely there.
It would appear then that the Weir will not be a major factor in flooding in Thomastown.
For our convenience let us refer to the 3 mills which up to their closure in the 1960s and owned at that time and for many years previously by the Pilsworth Family as
(A) Grennan Mill--the biggest mill situated in Mill St.,
(B) The Island Mill-- further upstream on the same bank
(C)The Little Mill at Arland’s Inch on the opposite bank.
Between the latter 2 mills is The Weir or The Gap which in recent times has fallen into a state of disrepair and which is the matter of our concern.
Grennan Mill
We learn from W.J. Pilsworth’s book “History of Thomastown and District” (Second Edition) was in existence in the very early days of the
18th Century as it was, in 1740, leased by one James Bull and, apart from one short interval, in the hands of the Bull Family up to 1850.
Then on the death of William Bull it passed to his daughter and her husband, Robert Pilsworth, and from then on remained in the Pilsworth Family. The water power for this mill would have been
obtained from the build up of water generated by the aforementioned Weir and further upstream by a Mill Race created at a point in the river nowadays known as The Big Mill Fork--a Mill Race which
through a series of Sluice Gates supplied a force of water to turn the wheels of industry and at a later date to generate electricity for the mill.
The Upper Mills (Island Mill)
We are told was erected in 1823 by the Innes Family. The mill was badly damaged by fire (as recorded in Mr. Pilsworth’s book) in 1867 and never got going properly again.
It was purchased by the Pilsworth family in 1880 and after this was used as stores.
The Little Mill
At Arland’s Inch, we are told was worked by a Mr. Bowker in the early 19th. Century.
I presume it was this gentleman who gave his name to “Bowker’s Pond” just upstream of this mill.
The mill passed into the possession of the Innes family. They constructed a wooden bridge or gangway from the Arland’s Inch Mill across the river to The Island Mill across which bags of grain were wheeled on truck cars. This bridge was washed away by a severe flood. The Pilsworth Family also purchased this mill, again circa 1880, and it also was used as a store.
Both of the latter mills would have been operated on the supply of water directed towards them respectively by the arms of the weir and by the sluice gates through which this water passed.
A reference in Mr. Pilsworth’s Book to flooding in the locality is interesting. He tells us that the original bridge at Thomastown, a short distance downstream from the mills, was completely destroyed by the flood of 1763 and that the replacement bridge was severely damaged by a flood in1792. This was seemingly before the erection of the 2 latter mills. Whether the present weir was in position or not, at that time, is not clear.
The present Thomastown Bridge was damaged by the flood of 1947 when the weir was very definitely there.
It would appear then that the Weir will not be a major factor in flooding in Thomastown.
