Windmill Millers of Suffolk

[Suffolk Mawther]

Entertaining, fascinating talk by Jonathan Sullivan of Saxtead Mill at Framlingham Historical Society last night.
J will get photocopies of Aldred and Jesse Wightman invoices that he has and pass to Jonathan.
 http://www.rootschat.com/links/0x8n/

SM ...

[windy_miller]

Glad I can help!

This might add a bit more to your tree, but another branch?  There was a miller in Brundish (who I have not been able to pin to a mill yet) called William Cook in 1809.  He had died still linked to Brundish by 1820.  Yet another William Cook was selling the (unidentified) mill in and advertisement in the Ipswich Journal in 1828.  (I have not been able to see the contents of this advert so I cannot say which mill its was likely to be).  Either of these men could well been George's father-in-law.  This would explain his employment as a journeyman miller.

If you do turn up anything mill related, esp. Suffolk mills, then I'd be grateful if you send a ref to me for my db.

Happy hunting,
Windy

[diplodicus]

Thanks Windy,

Yet another task for the record office list.

Malcolm

[pdadme]

Hi,
I only just found this post, which I see is quite old, and I haven't read through all the posts yet.
My Nan was Freda Florence Dawson, born 1896 at the Mill, Rushmere St Andrew. Her father Alfred Dawson (1863, Rushmere) and mother Florence Rachel Fenning (1872, Hemingstone) had the windmill at Rushmere. Her grandfather William Dawson (1819, Levington) had the windmill at Rushmere and a second one on Foxhall Rd, by Heath lane, Ipswich. William's family were millers, farmers and landowners around Suffolk. At least two of his brothers (George and Robert) were millers. A note from the Dolman collection states:

    The mill stood in Playford Road, at the corner of Heath Lane, at Grid Ref 203458. It was a smock mill, on a low brick plinth. Built 1814, sails removed 1928 and demolished c.1939.
 Trades directories record the Dawson family as millers from 1847, as
 follows:
 1847, 1853 George D
 1855 William D
 1858, 1864 George D
 1868 Robert D
 1869, 1874, 1879, 1883, 1888 William D
 1892 to 1937 Alfred D
 William Dawson died 4th May 1896 aged 77.

William was married to Elizabeth Fayers (1835, Milden) my gg grandmother. The Fayers family were also millers. Her great uncle William Fayers (1789, Bildeston) and his wife Elizabeth Freeman, were the millers at Bosmere Mill at Creeting St Mary.

My great grandmother Florence Fenning (see above) was the daughter of George Ambrose Fenning (1842, Elmsett) and Sarah Sheldrake (1842, Bramford). Sarah was descended from the Everett family, who had mills at Capel St Mary and environs,  as well as farms at Rushmere, next to Dawson's Mill.

If anyone has any interest in milling families of Suffolk, or any info, I would be most pleased to hear from you 

Regards
Phil How
(Croxley Green, Herts)

[CollinsofMelton]

Hi Windy,

This is my first post so hopefully I'm doing this right!

I'm doing research on my ancestors, the Collins families of millwrights - some in Melton, some in Woodbridge, some in Needham market and some in Framlingham. Its quite a dynasty but as they didn't seem to have much imagination there is a very limited selection of christian names which were used over and over again which is very confusing!!

Any info you or anyone on here might have which would allow me to cross reference or even add to the tree would be very helpful. Feel free to pm me if you wish.

I saw a posting from Gobbitt regarding a John Bigland Collins - he was one of my lot! Another Collins married a Mary Gobbitt....might be one of his relations - I have details if you like?

[diplodicus]

Windy wrote: This might add a bit more to your tree, but another branch?  There was a miller in Brundish (who I have not been able to pin to a mill yet) called William Cook in 1809.  He had died still linked to Brundish by 1820.  Yet another William Cook was selling the (unidentified) mill in and advertisement in the Ipswich Journal in 1828.  (I have not been able to see the contents of this advert so I cannot say which mill its was likely to be).  Either of these men could well been George's father-in-law.  This would explain his employment as a journeyman miller.

Windy, I have just revisited this post and realised that I can add a little flesh to the Brundish mill story...

In 1829, George Vincent my ggg-grandfather married Charlotte (nee Davis) young widow of William Cook who died in 1823 and whom she had married in 1820.

The William Cook advertising the mill is probably a relation to the miller William. George Vincent is the journeyman miller in Brundish in 1841 but moved south into Essex by 1851.

I haven't pursued William Cook's line as his ancestors are not related to me either by blood or by marriage.

Kind regards,
Malcolm

[Trevor Rix]

My mother's Ruffle family were for centuries farmers and millers in South Suffolk at Alpheton, Long Melford and Haverhill; and in North Essex at Castle Hedingham, Halstead, Wickham St Paul, Alphamstone and Belchamp Walter.