Fringford Mill and Attached Millhouse is a Grade II listed building in the Cherwell local planning authority area, England. First listed on 3 October 1988. A C18 Watermill, millhouse.

Fringford Mill and Attached Millhouse

WRENN ID
south-quoin-vermeil
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Cherwell
Constituency
Bicester and Woodstock MP: Calum Miller (LD)
Country
England
Date first listed
3 October 1988
Type
Watermill, millhouse
Address
Fringford Mill and Attached Millhouse, A421
OS grid reference
SP 613 287
Coordinates
51.95372, -1.10911
Source
Historic England listing

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

Description

Fringford Mill and the attached millhouse are a watermill and millhouse dating from the 18th century, with possible medieval origins. The buildings have undergone repairs and additions in the 19th and 20th centuries. They are constructed from coursed limestone rubble and squared coursed blocks of limestone, with some brick repairs. The left end gable of the mill is weatherboarded, and the structure features a steeply-pitched red tile roof with brick internal ridge and end stacks. The mill has a long rectangular range with a four-unit plan, while the watermill itself has a two-unit plan.

The buildings are two storeys high with an attic. The main entrance is located at the left end, featuring two doors on the front; one leads into a projecting lean-to on the left, which has a three-light casement, while the other door has a wooden lintel. The left gable has two renewed 20th-century metal casements. The single-storey lean-to includes reset two-light wood-mullioned windows and a 20th-century window.

Inside, the mill has a butt-purlin roof with collars and side purlins, and it contains two working millstones along with associated mill furniture and tools. The tuns and horses remain on the stone floor, as do the meal arks on the floor below. An unusually slender wooden upright shaft with fine facets is present. The mill machinery is primarily made of iron and dates to the later 19th century, with the stone furniture incorporating earlier woodwork. The exterior mill wheel is a breast waterwheel from the 19th century.

The millhouse has a two-unit plan with a 20th-century extension on the right end. It is two storeys high with a two-window range. The recessed entrance to the left has a 20th-century door, and there are three 20th-century casements with two additional 20th-century casements above. A large buttress is located in the center. The interior has not been inspected but is said to feature base crucks.

A mill at Fringford was mentioned in the Domesday survey as part of the holdings of Cogges Prior. The mill was operated until the early 20th century by the Fennemore family and continues to be used for demonstrations.

Local climate

Fringford Mill and Attached Millhouse sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 730 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 79% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 74% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 37 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 70% of listed buildings. Of these, 17 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.

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