Folly in Grounds of Mill House Situated to West of the Water Mill is a Grade II listed building in the Sevenoaks local planning authority area, England. First listed on 22 October 1982. Folly.

Folly in Grounds of Mill House Situated to West of the Water Mill

WRENN ID
ragged-minaret-wagtail
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Sevenoaks
Constituency
Sevenoaks MP: Laura Trott (Con)
Country
England
Date first listed
22 October 1982
Type
Folly
Address
Folly in Grounds of Mill House Situated to West of the Water Mill, High Street, Farningham
OS grid reference
TQ 544 670
Coordinates
51.38117, 0.21857
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The folly in the grounds of Mill House, located to the west of the Water Mill, likely dates from 1790 and is positioned on a hill overlooking the mill. To the left, there is a network of low flint walls topped with red brick. To the right, accessed by a steep bank, are three octagonal turrets. The leftmost turret is constructed of flint and brick in a chequered design, topped with a stone crocket and a ball finial. The central turret is truncated and made of flint and brick, while the right turret features a crenellated parapet and arrow-slit windows. Double-headed lancet windows are located to the right of this turret. On the far right, there is a summer house made of flint with stone dressings. Its rear wall displays a diaper pattern of stock brick and flint, with flint galleting. The inside of the front wall is lined with cockle shells, and it has a 'Gothic' painted arch with stone lights. A painted arch with stone quoins leads back into the hillside. Beneath the turrets and summer house are two chambers excavated from the hillside, both featuring round-headed brick entrances set in a flint wall and lined with brick. Air shafts extend upward, likely connecting to the turrets. The left chamber contains a small lead cistern dated 1790, part of a pump, while the other chamber has an ogee-headed arch at the end facing the entrance. These chambers were probably used for storing grain for the adjacent mill, indicating that the folly served both practical and ornamental purposes.

Local climate

Folly in Grounds of Mill House Situated to West of the Water Mill sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 710 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 85% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 85% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 30 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 64% of listed buildings. Of these, 14 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  1. Statue Set on Plinth to West of Folly Grade II 11 m
  2. The Water Mill Grade II* 18 m
  3. Mill House Grade II* 31 m
  4. The Stables of the Mill House, The Counting House and Gardeners Cottage Grade II 54 m
  5. Cherry Tree Cottage, Owl Cottage, John Board Family Butcher Grade II 87 m
  6. 5 and 6, High Street Grade II 95 m
  7. Bridge Cottage Mill Cottages Grade II 95 m
  8. Lion Cottages (No 1 Darenth Insurance Brokers Limited)(Nos 2 and 3) Grade II 95 m
  9. Garden Wall to Mount Pleasant, to South East of the House Fronting Road Grade II 97 m
  10. L Shaped Garden Wall to the Mount, to North East of House Grade II 100 m