Baldock's Mill The Domesday Book
of 1086, the great land survey ordered by William the Conqueror, records that six water mills existed in Bourne at that time out of an estimated 5,000 mills in the whole country. They were owned by Oger the Breton and produced an income of thirty shillings a year. He also had two parts of the profits from another mill that brought in a further five shillings a year. Other landowners in Bourne are also recorded as having "parts of mills", a system we would refer to today as shares, but it is not known how many there were. These values seem insignificant by today's monetary standards but in Norman times they were a most important incomes for the Lords of the Manor.
The only thing we know about the present Baldock's Mill is that it was built on the banks of the Bourne Eau in 1800. It operated until the mid-1920's and takes its name from the last family to work it, i.e. Baldock. The mill wheel was 15 ft in diameter by 3 ft wide and there was a smaller fly wheel measuring 5 ft by 1 ft. Corn was brought in to be ground into animal feed by farmers and smallholders who paid for the grinding. Maize was also split for chicken feed and horse beans and a flour dresser provided sufficient for the family's own use. Two sets of stones operated on the first floor fed from hoppers on the floor above, the corn being lifted up from the ground floor where it had been previously
delivered by a chain hoist driven, like the stones, by the wooden undershot water wheel. Access to the two upper floors by the miller was by ladders. The mill operated twice a day for three hours and this time was increased by the digging of the leg between the paddock that is now the War Memorial
Gardens and the Wellhead cottage. After powering Baldock's Mill, the water then ran downstream and could be used by Notley's Mill in Eastgate. The mill was listed in 1973 when the task of restoring the building began. The early work was carried out by boys and girls from Bourne Secondary School (now the Robert Manning Technology College) under the guidance of teachers Mike Watkins and Alan Dawn. It was then envisaged that the building would eventually become an industrial and agricultural museum but no firm plans had been drawn up. Nevertheless, the youngsters tackled the work with gusto, chipping and renovating brickwork, plastering, fitting new doors, painting and decorating. The roof was repaired and broken windows re-glazed and while work was going ahead, gifts of old equipment and other artefacts began to arrive for the museum display planned for the building. Bourne Civic Society eventually stepped in with a proposal to run the mill as a Heritage Centre and in 1981, Bourne United Charities agreed to lease it to them for a peppercorn rent in order that it would be preserved for community use. This lease was renewed in 2002 for a further 21 years and the full potential of the building in this new role is slowly being realised. Further restoration work has been carried out by a dedicated band of helpers and although funds have been slow in coming, a Heritage Centre has already been established with a memorial room dedicated to the life and times of Raymond Mays, the motor racing pioneer who lived in the town. This feature was opened on 29th August 1999 by the local MP Mr Quentin Davies, the member for Grantham and Stamford, and the display includes the racing goggles worn by Raymond Mays, some of his trophies and an impressive display of old photographs reflecting his career.
Other rooms are slowly being filled with artefacts and archive material relating to the town's history including a detailed survey of the water supplies that brought commercial success a century ago, railway maps and memorabilia from the days when Bourne was a rail junction, the old water cress beds, the brewing industry and a history of the Bourne Eau, a photographic record of the life and times of Charles Worth (1825-95), the solicitor's son from Bourne who established an internationally famous fashion house in Paris, and a collection of old photographs showing aspects of Bourne in times past. Also on display are the stones from an Anglo-Saxon arch reputed to have been removed from Bourne Abbey during restoration work in the late 19th century. They were taken to the old vicarage, now the Cedars residential care home for the elderly, where they stood in the copse area adjoining the church hall until the vicarage was sold in the mid-1980s. The field adjoining the mill was also known as Baldock's Paddock but this was acquired by Bourne United Charities in 1947 and the land used for the creation of an open space incorporating a stone cenotaph with the names of the dead from two world wars in a dignified setting which we know today as the War Memorial Gardens.
In June 2001, the Heritage Centre was presented with a silver rose bowl by the Rotary Club of Bourne for the most outstanding community achievement during the previous 12 months, an award that was handed over to the chairman of the Civic Society, Mrs Brenda Jones, at a special lunch. The same award was presented to the society for a second time in 2004, this time recognising the work of society member Jim Jones carried out during 2002-03 on restoring the two water wheels that originally powered the mill. The project cost £12,000 and was funded through grants, mainly from Lincolnshire County Council, which enabled the society bring the building back into its original state when it was used for milling corn. As a result, in the summer of 2005, he was presented with a highly commended certificate by Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust for his achievement as part of an awards scheme launched in 1992 to promote the environment and raise awareness of wildlife and conservation. The mill was part of the Marquess of Exeter's
estate and from 1856 it was operated by John Baxter Shilcock, the maternal grandfather of Raymond Mays. His family had many business interests in the town including ownership of the Star Brewery but he also served as a local magistrate and a prominent councillor and was the first chairman of Bourne Urban District Council from 1899-1900. Thomas Pick was employed as his manager from 1876 until 1885 and he was succeeded by William Hudson who continued in the job until 1890. Subsequent millers were William Townson from 1896-1900 and John Pocklington who continued until 1913 when Frederick Baldock, who was both a miller and a carpenter, took over.
Their names also appear on the cenotaph in the War Memorial Gardens but with the initials only. Frank, who was born at Stickford, enlisted at the outbreak of the Great War and was serving as a lance corporal with the 6th Battalion, the Lincolnshire Regiment when he was killed in action at Gallipoli on 9th August 1915 in the vicinity of Scimitar Hill, Suvla. His name is also commemorated on the Helles Memorial in Gallipoli. He had only been married for a few years before his death and the couple had one child. Harold was a Boy 1st Class with the Royal Navy but died at the age of 17 while serving aboard HMS Natal, a 13,500-ton armoured cruiser when it sank on 30th December 1915 after an accidental internal explosion at Cromarty Harbour in Scotland, causing the death of 421 men out of a complement of 704. His name is also commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial. Jack, the third son, was wounded in action but survived the war and rejoined his father at the mill.
The name Baldock (also Baldick) actually means Baghdad and dates back to the 12th century, from the town Baldock in Hertfordshire, England, founded by the Knights Templar who named it after the Arabian city then known to them as Baldac, an early French form of the name. A 12th century record also gives the name as Baldoce. Recorded Baldocks in England include Hugh de Baldoca (1185), Thomas Baldac (1280) and William Baldocke (1460). BALDOCK'S MILL IN PAST TIMES
Another photograph from the same period
showing a woman feeding the REVISED JULY 2005 A photographic record of Baldock's Mill before restoration The Mill Wheels Restoration Project Baldock's Mill from the rear Baldock's Mill in winter See also Frank and Harold Baldock Notley's Mill
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