"Hempnall Mill Rd towermill was a 4 storey towermill that was built in 1814 in an adjacent field to the existing postmill and eventually took over the whole business. The mill was built by James Carver under a 150 year lease dated 26th May 1814 granted to him by The Trustees of the Inhabitants for the time being of the Town of Hempnall at a ground rent of £3 per annum. He was granted the land to build One brick Tower Wind Mill of a proper and sufficient size and dimension ... with all its requisite going gears and appertenances fit for grinding corn and grain. He was also to ensure the mill was properly maintained. At the end of the lease, the owner was to take the mill down and remove it in order to leave the land in a fit state for cultivation.
The mill was originally designed to draw trefoil seeds as well as grind wheat to flour. The seeds stones were almost certainly taken from the postmill and installed into the more powerful towermill. However, by 1833 the pair of seed stones had been replaced by a second pair of Fench burr stones.
The 25 foot tower with 2ft 3in thick walls, had two doors on the ground floor and held a boat shaped cap with a petticoat and a 6 bladed, left handed fan. The mill was powered by four double shuttered sails, the outer pair having 8 bays of 3 shutters and the inner pair having 7 bays of 3 shutters and 1 bay of 2 shutters. The sails were struck by rack & pinion via a chain pole. drove a pair of seed stones and a pair of French burr stones. A flour mill and jumper were also in use.
James Carver snr mortgaged the leasehold mill complex and land to Thomas White, a local farmer from Shotesham for £200. In December 1828 they both assigned equal shares of the remainder of the lease to James Carver's other son, Thomas Carver and a David Irwin, both men being printers working in Norwich. They in turn took out a mortgage from Robert Youngs of Lakenham for £200 in January 1829.
On 1st February 1834 John Thirkettle, a Hempnall farmer, bought the mill for £255 with the mortgage being paid off within the price. He then took out a new mortgage for £200 from Susanna Forster, a widow from Thetford.
In November 1859, Thomas Parker, miller at Topcroft_postmill, agreed to buy the mill for £230 and in October 1860, with the mill already in his occupation, the property was assigned to him by the Trustees of John Thirkettle, who had died some 20 years earlier on 19th March 1840. Thomas Parker took out mortgages totalling £250 in 1861 and 1863 from John Hotson of Stratton St Mary.
In 1863, due to ill health, Thomas Parker was working the mill in conjunction with Walter Henry Hylton of Hempnall_Green_smockmill. However, by October 1864, Thomas Parker had defaulted on mortgage repayments and John Hotson had repossessed the mill.
John Hotson's widow Eleanor Hotson was the sole executrix of his estate and had been unable to sell the mill by auction on more than one occasion. In April 1898 she succeeeded in selling the mill to the sitting tenant miller, Henry Hart for £100. In March 1900 he assigned the lease to Arthur Salter, from Fritton for £230 thereby obtaining a healthy profit. The initial agreement of 13th March 1900 also included the portable steam engine.
In April 1900, Arthur Salter charged his deeds to Barclay & Co., bankers in Harleston. However, by May 1901 he was forced to make a Deed of Assignment for the benefit of his creditors and the bank put the mill up for sale by auction in the same month, although it remained unsold until July 1904.
Walter William Vout, miller at Hardwick_postmill, bought the mill in July 1904 and it was being worked by Henry Vout later that year. In 1915, Arthur Aldridge of Shotesham_watermill bought the mill at auction and it was sold again by Eliza Aldridge in June 1919 for £300 to Miss Helen Kate Vout.
Walter William Vout was born in 1874 at Salhouse and married Hannah Maria Dann who was born at Fritton, in the last quarter of 1895. Their daughter Helen Kate Vout was born in 1897 at Hardwick.
Kelly's of 1922 lists Miss Helen Kate Vont as the miller, but by 1925 she was listed as Mrs.Helen Kate Hannen having married Robert Stanley Hannen, who was listed as miller in 1929. Helen Kate's maiden name was in fact Vout and she was the daughter of Walter William Vout, who also owned mills at Ditchingham and Hardwick. In September 1930, Helen Kate Hannen sold the mill to George Wellesly Bristow for £420. It is likely that he died around this time as Kelly's of 1933 and 1937 only list Mrs. M. A. Bristow as the miller.
On 9th December 1978, the Hempnall Mill Centre for Day Care held an informal open day prior to opening on 12th December that year. The Centre was the result of a joint project between the Norfolk Social Services Department and the Trustees of the 400 year old Hempnall Town Estate Poor Charity and was designed by Norfolk's assistant architect. The mill tower was converted to form a cosy sitting room. "
SOURCE - (
visit link)