Enton Mill and Enton Mill West

Enton Mill and Enton Mill West

The original corn mill dates from the early 17th century but was re-roofed around 1754, with a date stone on the chimneystack. The adjoining mill house bears a date stone of 1621 on its north wall. Both buildings were refurbished around 1908 in Tudor style by architect Charles A Mackenzie Skues. A western extension was added shortly afterwards, and around 1921 a detached cottage was built further west for the owner's mother-in-law. This cottage was linked to the main house a few years later by a billiard room link block, also designed by Skues.

The original corn mill is timber-framed and clad in weather-boarding. The adjoining cottage is built of local stone with ironstone galletting and tile-hung gables. The western extensions are timber-framed with brick infill. All roofs are tiled with brick chimneystacks. Windows are mainly early 20th-century iron casements with leaded lights and elaborate iron catches.

The plan consists of an original four-bay mill aligned north-west to south-east, with a three-bay mill house adjoining at right angles to the east, a drawing room extension to the west of the mill, a curved billiard room further west, and at the western end the formerly separate cottage.

The eastern part of Enton Mill is the former mill house which, owing to the slope downwards to the north, was originally two storeys with attics on the north side, but the lower storey was buried around 1908. It is built of local stone with ironstone galletting and red brick dressings. The south side has two projecting gables hung with plain and curved tiles and a large axial chimneystack. The right side is recessed with a gabled dormer with curved tiles. Windows are early 20th-century casement windows with leaded lights. Originally there were no windows on the south side. The east end gable has alternate courses of plain and patterned tiles. The north or garden front has three gabled dormers, three cast iron casements and a moulded brick band, originally between floors before the ground floor was buried.

The adjoining former mill building sits at right angles to the mill house. The south side retains a right-hand door in its original position, but the wooden weather hood on brackets was added around 1908 together with cast iron footscrapers and a horseshoe-shaped pattern of ironstone setts in front of the door. The three casements in the gable also date from around 1908. The side elevations have gabled dormers and the east side has a tall external brick chimneystack. In the centre of the roof is a gabled louvre. The north or garden front has a full-width, two-storey square bay of nine lights, hung with curved tiles between the floors.

The early 20th-century west wing is two-storeys on the south side and is timber-framed with brick infill. This consists of Flemish bond on the ground floor and a mixture of English bond and herringbone pattern on the first floor. The iron casement windows have leaded lights and there is a massive moulded brick end chimneystack. The north side is two-storeys and attics with a massive right-side gable with decorative curved braces and some herringbone and English bond brick infill which overhangs on brackets, and a recessed porch with two hipped dormers above.

Adjoining to the west is the 1920s billiard room extension, now part of Enton Mill West. This is curved, single-storey and attics, timber-framed with herringbone brick infilling with leaded light windows and eyebrow dormers to both front and rear of the tiled roof.

At the western end is the former circa 1921 detached cottage, now forming the major part of Enton Mill West. This is two-storeys with a brick ground floor and a first floor partly timber-framed with brick infill and part weather-boarded. The south side has a large weather-boarded gable. The west side has an overhanging timber-framed gable with passing braces, a weather-boarded north gable, and a further overhanging gable on the east side to the right of the main entrance.

Interior

Entrance into Enton Mill from the south side leads directly into a staircase-hall in the former mill building which, owing to the slope of the ground, is on the ground floor at the south side but on the first floor to the north. There are original timber-framed side walls but the floors were inserted around 1908. The principal feature of the hall is a spiral staircase leading to the lower floor, which has at its centre the mast of a tea clipper of a similar type to the Cutty Sark. A corridor leads to a north sitting room which has some original timber-framing, a ceiling beam with one inch chamfer with run-out stop, and a brick corner fireplace. The dining room immediately below has a half-glazed screen, oak panelling and a four-centred arched stone fireplace. Throughout there are early 20th-century oak panelled doors. The house contains reclaimed baths from tea clippers. The top floor of the former mill building has an exposed roof structure with staggered purlins, angled queen struts and some exposed rafters together with carpenters' marks. One room retains an early 20th-century wooden fireplace.

The former mill house to the east contains a refurbished kitchen on the ground floor with one or two earlier exposed beams, and the upper floor retains the outline of the axial chimneystack. In the early 20th-century western extension is a straight flight staircase with moulded balusters leading from ground to first floor. At the south end of the ground floor is a study with a brick fireplace, but the major part of this floor contains a large drawing room with axial ceiling beams. One former bathroom retains a mosaic floor.

Entrance into Enton Mill West is from the north-west, leading into the entrance hall which has a straight flight staircase with stick balusters and chamfered newel posts. The curved former billiard room, now living room, is of three bays with axial beams supported on curved brackets and at the eastern end is a round-headed door which formerly led directly into Enton Mill. At the western end is a raised platform with a four-centred stone fireplace and painted panelling with a plate shelf. The adjoining cloakroom has early 20th-century mosaic walls and floors. The kitchen has a painted brick fireplace with moulded shelf and built-in wooden cupboards. The bedrooms have similar painted brick fireplaces and built-in cupboards, and the larger bedroom has exposed ceiling timbers. There is also a bathroom with mosaic walls and floor.

Subsidiary Feature

To the north of the house is a circa 1908 boundary wall and gate arch. The wall is approximately three feet high of red brick in English bond with angled brick coping and square brick piers at regular intervals. One section in the centre consists of a cast iron panel with floral motifs. At each end of the wall are long tile-topped garden seats. At the eastern end is a round-headed brick arch containing a wooden pedestrian gate with large cast iron hinges and latch.