Information for record number MWA568:
Studley Mill; Priory Mills

Summary Studley Mill, a watermill for which there is documentary evidence from the Medieval period onwards. It was used as a cornmill and needle mill in the Imperial period before its demolition. The remains are visible as earthworks which lie to the east of the Riverside area.
What Is It?  
Type: Watermill, Corn Mill, Needle Mill
Period: Imperial - Industrial (1751 AD - 1913 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Studley
District: Stratford on Avon, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 07 63
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 A mill is mentioned at Studley in 1086 and in the 13th century and 14th century there were two mills. Further references exist in the Medieval and Post Medieval periods.
2 It is difficult to correlate field and documentary evidence for the mill sites in Studley parish. The Priory mills first appear by name in the 18th century. There were three mills at this date. A fourth mill is recorded in 1738 and 1766 associated with the 'swan pools' and this appears to be the Priory mill. An 18th century estate map shows the layout of fishponds (PRN 6163). The mill was originally fed from the River Arrow, which was twice its normal width at this point. After 1824 a new mill-pool was constructed by damming the river. This has now been drained. The W side has been filled in but the dam survives and the main part of the pond with its islands can be traced, exceedingly overgrown. An overflow channel drains back into the river. A number of buildings are indicated on the 18th century map, but the main mill always lay across the Arrow. Beighton's map of c1725 shows two mills here, one each side of the Arrow. A number of separate wheels may have been operating and this would explain the record of three or four mills. Corn grinding and needle making are recorded in the 19th century. In the 1870's corn-milling ceased. In 1890 a new scouring mill was built next to the older buildings. The old mill was later demolished and the scouring mill is still operating, using electric motors.
3 Studley needle mill was incorporated in a survey of needle mills in the Arrow Valley, at which time, (in 1994), the mill was no longer operating. The survey includes plans and photographic records of the 19th century mill.
4 Soil stripping and the excavation of foundation trenches at Priory mill (WA7823), revealed layers connected with the demolition of the 19th century needle and corn mill buildings and the course of the former mill race.
6 Description.
 
Sources
Source No:
Source Type: Archaeological Report
Title: Survey of Arrow Valley Needle Industry
Author/originator: Collins P
Date: 1994
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 5
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Warwickshire Watermills
Author/originator: Booth D T N
Date: 1978
Page Number: 83-4
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Victoria County History, vol 3, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Salzman L F (ed)
Date: 1945
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 3
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: Studley Parish Survey
Author/originator: Hooke D
Date: 1980
Page Number: 54-5
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 6
Source Type: Descriptive Text
Title: Priory Mills
Author/originator:
Date: post 1980
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 4
Source Type: Observation Report
Title: Archaeological Observation at Priory Mill, Studley, Warwickshire
Author/originator: Gethin B
Date: 1995
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Images:  
There are no images associated with this record.  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
technique Documentary Evidence Documentary evidence is another name for written records. The first written records in Britain date back to the Roman period. Documentary evidence can take many different forms, including maps, charters, letters and written accounts. When archaeologists are researching a site, they often start by looking at documentary evidence to see if there are clues that will help them understand what they might find. Documentary evidence can help archaeologists understand sites that are discovered during an excavation, field survey or aerial survey. back
technique Earthwork Earthworks can take the form of banks, ditches and mounds. They are usually created for a specific purpose. A bank, for example, might be the remains of a boundary between two or more fields. Some earthworks may be all that remains of a collapsed building, for example, the grassed-over remains of building foundations.

In the winter, when the sun is lower in the sky than during the other seasons, earthworks have larger shadows. From the air, archaeologists are able to see the patterns of the earthworks more easily. Earthworks can sometimes be confusing when viewed at ground level, but from above, the general plan is much clearer.

Archaeologists often carry out an aerial survey or an earthwork survey to help them understand the lumps and bumps they can see on the ground.
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technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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period Medieval 1066 AD to 1539 AD (the 11th century AD to the 16th century AD)

The medieval period comes after the Saxon period and before the post medieval period.

The Medieval period begins in 1066 AD.
This was the year that the Normans, led by William the Conqueror (1066 – 1087), invaded England and defeated Harold Godwinson at the Battle of Hastings in East Sussex.
The Medieval period includes the first half of the Tudor period (1485 – 1603 AD), when the Tudor family reigned in England and eventually in Scotland too.

The end of the Medieval period is marked by Henry VIII’s (1509 – 1547) order for the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the years running up to 1539 AD. The whole of this period is sometimes called the Middle Ages.
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period Post Medieval About 1540 AD to 1750 AD (the 16th century AD to the 18th century AD)

The Post Medieval period comes after the medieval period and before the Imperial period.

This period covers the second half of the reign of the Tudors (1485 – 1603), the reign of the Stuarts (1603 – 1702) and the beginning of the reign of the Hannoverians (1714 – 1836).
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period Imperial 1751 AD to 1914 AD (end of the 18th century AD to the beginning of the 20th century AD)

This period comes after the Post Medieval period and before the modern period and starts with beginning of the Industrial Revolution in 1750. It includes the second part of the Hannoverian period (1714 – 1836) and the Victorian period (1837 – 1901). The Imperial period ends with the start of the First World War in 1914.
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monument POOL * A small body of water, either natural or artificial. back
monument MILL RACE * The channel of water that provides a current of water to drive a millwheel. back
monument LAYER * An archaeological unit of soil in a horizontal plane which may seal features or be cut through by other features. back
monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument FISHPOND * A pond used for the rearing, breeding, sorting and storing of fish. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument MILL * A factory used for processing raw materials. Use more specific mill type where known. See also TEXTILE MILL, for more narrow terms. back
monument POND * A body of still water often artificially formed for a specific purpose. Use specifc type where known. back
monument DRAIN * An artificial channel for draining water or carrying it off. back
monument PRIORY * A monastery governed by a prior or prioress. Use with narrow terms of DOUBLE HOUSE, FRIARY, MONASTERY or NUNNERY. back
monument INDUSTRIAL * This is the top term for the class. See INDUSTRIAL Class List for narrow terms. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument NEEDLE MILL * A mill or works where needles were manufactured. back
monument TRENCH * An excavation used as a means of concealment, protection or both. back
monument CORN MILL * A mill for grinding corn. Use with power type where known. back
monument ISLAND * A piece of land, sometimes man-made, completely surrounded by water. back
monument WATERMILL * A mill whose machinery is driven by water. back
monument EARTHWORK * A bank or mound of earth used as a rampart or fortification. back
monument DAM * A barrier of concrete or earth, etc, built across a river to create a reservoir of water for domestic and/or industrial usage. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record