Mill Piece

The Mill Piece pond is a site of significant importance to the history of Conisbrough. It was first referred to in the Norman Domesday Book forming part of the ‘Great Feast of Conisbrough’.

Mill Piece Site Map

However, since the 1980’s the Mill Piece had seen little work. This resulted in a stagnant mess of a pond, over grown vegetation and enough rubbish to fill a dozen skips. As a place a majority of our volunteers had visited from childhood it was decided to be the primary focus of the group.

Work started in 2004 focusing on the sites litter and fly tipping problem. From the outset the need for partnerships was identified and a special thank you needs to be given the DMBC Community First Team and local Scout group.

Whilst the problem of litter is an ongoing issue the group’s next focus on the site was the pond. Work started in 2005 to cut back the vegetation opening views of the pond many had forgot. Unfortunately, work on the pond had to quickly grind to a holt as the sediment was found to be contaminated with zinc and sulphur. This came as a major blow to group which had always prided itself on being hands on and marked the start of a lengthy planning and fundraising process. Once again a big thank you must be given to a number of DMBC departments for helping EnTour develop a series of plans which funding applications and planning permission could be sort.

2006 saw some major developments in the ponds restoration initiative. An application of planning permission was submitted and WREN (Waster Recycling Environmental) agreed to provide £25,000 towards the restoration fund. With WREN, DMBC and EnTour’s fund raising contributions we have reached the two thirds point of the total project costs. This still means we have a lot work ahead of us to raise the remaining £22,000 but we are hopeful the work can be completed in 2008.

 

 

Mill Piece History

The Mill Piece site used to house the ‘Damhead Sawmill’. According to Marsh (1997, p70) “this stone built mill in the shadows of the castle on Low Road was founded before 1838 by William Wilson who in that year made ‘bed poles, bobbins and other turned items’ using water power from Kearsley Brook. This sawmill remained in the ownership of the Wilson family throughout most of it long life; Charles Wilson of ‘Willow Vale’, Low Road was the last proprietor of this family...

The old mill has long been demolished and the dam allowed to empty but the timeless brook continues to pick its way through the willow trees on its journey to Burcroft and the river.

During the last century this area was called the ‘Dam Head’. Later it lost its ‘head’ and was simply gave rise to an amusing true story. A Mr Franklin had two allotments in which he grew vegetables and, in one nearest to the dam, flowers including roses. One Sunday in the early 1900’s, his granddaughter was seen carrying a bunch of these roses home when a lady, on her way to morning service, stopped to admire them. The little girl, with understandable pride, explained that they were from her grandfather’s dam garden. Such blasphemy would doubtless go unnoticed today but 90 years ago things were very different and the child could not understand why she had been scolded.”