Mr Green’s “Gold Belt” Roller Mills
William Green’s ‘Gold Belt’ Roller Mills, Brantham, Suffolk by Mildred Cookson, The Mills Archive, UK
W
Milling journals of the past at The Mills Archive
system. Mr Green became convinced that to keep and extend illiam Green of ‘Gold his trade, a roller plant was absolutely necessary and ultimately Belt’ Brantham and ordered a four sack roller plant from ER Turner of Ipswich, less Raydon Mill was 42 years old when the Miller than 10 miles away. Along with the roller plant, Turners installed a Jonval Turbine, contained a report on which was said to run with smooth and regular revolutions. him (June 4, 1894). He Apparently the nine-foot diameter crown wheel, made at St started out in agriculture Peter’s Works, Ipswich, ran as easily as if it the been the fly and moved on to become wheel of a toy engine and not a mass of metal weighing about a a flour salesman. He then ton and a half. decided he wanted not only to sell flour but to produce it. Since the installation of the turbine, less work was required of Accordingly, in 1880 he rented Raydon Mill in Suffolk. Although without any previous milling experience, he soon showed that there the engine, which was of the compound beam type of 12 horse was no more enthusiastic miller in East Anglia. In 1888 he purchased Brantham Mills, which at that time ran with five pairs of millstones driven by a breast shot waterwheel. The illustration of the exterior of the mills gives a good view of the entrance. In the deep red of the brickwork on the face of the mill was set a small white stone, bearing the simple inscription “I. P., 1778.” Mr Green enlarged the mill, adding a screening house and an engine and boiler house with a shaft within the 80-foot high chimney, as seen on the left of the exterior illustration. The millstones were supplemented by smooth rolls for the conversion of middlings and for a few years, the mill was worked on a combination A Jonval Catalogue The Turner dustless purifier
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