Worn Black-Powder Millstones At Chilworth
- Lined-up as a Blast Wall:
Interesting Histories of this site:
The River WEY & it's tributary The Tilling Bourne were conveniently located for basing milling industry there in Surrey (nr. Guildford) as they had a decent supply of flowing water - so a variety of buildings sprung-up to process sulfur, saltpeter and charcoal (10:75:15) into their priority product.
The valley also grew plenty of ALDER trees which together with Hazel makes a superior charcoal.
Charcoal Burning:
From before 1626 gunpowder was made at this site where as many as 600 people were employed in jobs as varied as making the barrels to store the powder, charcoal burning, hop-gardens and brewing beer for the workers refreshment.
The East India Company took over this river valley gunpowder site early (1625 ish) to maximize it's efforts to introduce British justice to the Indian Sub-Continent.
- When they (the British East India Company) conquered Bengal in 1757 - they then controlled something like 70% of the worlds saltpeter (KNO3) plus the opium poppy growing center - closing a supply & demand gap .. this greatly enhanced their profitable circular shipping exploitation trade.
The Chilworth Works operated for four hundred years despite repeated fatal explosions - progressing onward to steam power and the development of Brown or prismatic Powder (- with a slower burning rate for artillery), - and even Cordite for the last thirty years from 1890-1920. - Initially the Cordite works was German owned and developed until taken over by Vickers and then by the Admiralty.
The site now is a pleasant nature walk that cloaks much old industrial architecture in a leafy green cover - while it is famously home to a rare type of introduced dormouse - & probably will also likely be infested by grey squirrel and foxes too. - I haven't been there so I'm only guessing.
- Take a look at the "Bald Explorer's" video visit to the Gunpowder Mill site:
Marty K.
.. If you've got a clear mind and at least a week to read it .. this Wikipedia treatise on GUNPOWDER is painstakingly thorough:
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