Editing River Stour, Suffolk (section)

==Milling==
The river and its tribtaries have been an important source of power to the communities that live near them since at least the time of the Domesday Book of 1086. Some 45 water mills are known to have existed along their banks.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} Many of the sites are identifiable from modern maps. In some cases, either the mill or the associated mill house is named, while in others, multiple channels and an obvious mill pond show their location. Below Sudbury, most of the locks were associated with a mill.<ref name=osmap>Ordnance Survey, 1:25000 map</ref> None of the mills are still operational, but where the buildings still exist, most are now [[listed building]]s. Because the river forms the boundary between Suffolk and Essex for most of its length, those on the left bank are generally in Suffolk, and those on the right bank are in Essex. The furthest upstream is Kedington, where a mill was known to exist in 1066, but had been demolished by 1086.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} The present building dates from the 18th century, and was a corn mill until 1901. It is Grade II listed,<ref>{{NHLE |num=1376727 |desc=Water Mill, Kedington}}</ref> as is the adjacent 17th-century mill house.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1182439 |desc=House at Water Mill, Kedington}}</ref> Wixoe Mill is also an 18th-century building, constructed with a timber frame with weatherboarding on a brick base. The mill house and stables are nearby.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1236085 |desc=Wixoe Mill (Water Mill)}}</ref>

Baythorne Mill in Birdbrook dates from the 18th century, but was extended in the 19th century, when a building to house a steam engine and a tall chimney were added. It retains its mill wheel, although it is not operational, and some rare early leaded glass windows.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1122344 |desc=Baythorne Mill, Birdbrook}}</ref> At Clare, the 19th-century mill house survives<ref>{{NHLE |num=1376687 |desc=Mill House, Clare}}</ref> but the mill building was destroyed by fire in 1978.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} At Pentlow, a long range dating from the 18th century contains both the mill and the mill house. The timber frame is clad with red bricks, and both parts are now residential.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1232610 |desc=Pentlow Mill and Mill House}}</ref> At Lyston Mill, the weather-boarded timber-framed mill house remains, although the mill itself was demolished in 1887 after a period of disuse.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1147180 |desc=Lyston Mill}}</ref> Borley Mill is a large timber-framed structure with three storeys, with a gabled lucombe projecting from the roof.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1123285 |desc=Borley Mill}}</ref> It was a corn mill until 1916, and was then used to produce anilmal feed until it closed in 1969. In the 1940s there was probably a steam engine at the site, but the tall chimney has since been demolished.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} On the outskirts of Sudbury, the building at Brundon Mill dates from the 18th century.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1037517 |desc=Brundon Mill}}</ref> Water power was supplemented by a steam engine from 1857 until cereal milling ceased in 1923. It was converted into a house in 1932.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} Sudbury Mill is a four-storey structure, parts of which date from the 17th and 18th centuries,<ref>{{NHLE |num=1051999 |desc=Corn Mill (Sudbury Flour Mills)}}</ref> but most of it date from 1890. The water wheel, installed in 1889, still turns, although it does not drive machinery. A steam-powered roller mill was added in the early 20th century, and it was producing animal feed when it closed in 1964. The building is now the Mill Hotel.{{sfn|Starr|2013}}

[[File:Flatford Mill - geograph.org.uk - 4300283.jpg|thumb|right|Flatford Mill is a Grade I listed building, used as a field study centre.]]

Great Cornard was the first site where a lock was needed to navigate around the mill. The mill house dates from the 18th century, with later additions.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1036628 |desc=Mill House, Mill Tye}}</ref> The family of Edward Baker ran the mill from 1851 to 1967, after which it produced animal feed. The site has since been redeveloped for housing.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} Great Henny is another site where only the mill house survives. It is an early 19th-century timber-framed building with a hipped slate roof.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1123267 |desc=Mill House, Henny Street}}</ref> The mill ceased production before the Second World War, and was subsequently damaged by bombing, leading to it being demolished when the war ended.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} Bures Mill is a timber-framed building, parts of which are weatherboarded, but much of it is now covered in corrugated asbestos panels.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1285546 |desc=The Mill, Mill Lane, Bures}}</ref> Wiston or Wissington Mill is Grade II* listed. It dates from the 18th and 19th centuries, and internally still contains the milling machinery, while externally parts of the water wheel remain. Part of the mill has been converted into a house, including a wing dating from the 16th century.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1033616 |desc=Wiston Mill, Nayland With Wissington}}</ref>

Boxted Mill house is a two-storey building with attics,<ref>{{NHLE |num=1238742 |desc=Boxted Mill}}</ref> but the mill building was demolished in the 1920s. At Langham, there was a corn mill and a fulling mill in 1086, but the fulling mill was demolished around 1510. In 1752, it was recorded that the remaining mill could fulfil either function. The building was reconstructed in brick around 1779, and ceased operating in 1912. It was later demolished to make way for a pumping station.{{sfn|Starr|2013}} Flatford Mill is well known because of the paintings of John Constable. It carries a date stone showing 1733, but may include some earlier material. The structure includes a granary to the rear, and a 19th-century wing adjoining the granary. Much of it is constructed of red brick, with some weatherboarding. It was owned and operated by the Constable family from the mid-18th century until 1901, when milling ceased, due to competition from more efficient mills. After a period of decay it was restored and given to the [[National Trust]], and is now leased to the [[Field Studies Council]], who operate a field studies centre there. It is Grade I listed, because of its association with Constable.<ref>{{NHLE |num=1351931 |desc=Flatford Mill}}</ref>{{sfn|Starr|2013}} In 2012, an [[Archimedes screw]] turbine was installed at the mill. Rated at 11&nbsp;kW, it was expected to provide around a third of the energy used by the field studies centre.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-18036292 |title=Flatford Mill installs water turbine |publisher=BBC News |date=13 May 2012}}</ref> Work has since been carried out to improve the efficiency of the turbine, and to install a fish pass.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hallidayshydropower.com/casestudy/flatford-mill/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230529162029/https://www.hallidayshydropower.com/casestudy/flatford-mill/ |archive-date=29 May 2023 |url-status=live |title=Flatford Mill case study |publisher=Hallidays Hydropower}}</ref> The lowest mill on the river was Brantham or Green's Mill, which was recorded in 1086. It may have been a tide mill at that time, and was definitely so later on. It was rebuilt in 1778, and subsequently became a steam-powered roller mill, producing cereals. It ceased to operate in the 1930s, although it was used as a pepper mill during the Second World War, but was damaged during the conflict. The remains were destroyed by fire in 1965.{{sfn|Starr|2013}}