Bradshaws Mill in Driffield, also known as Bell Mills, is a prominent landmark and a major business.  Family member Stuart Bradshaw related the history of the mill and the Bradshaw family’s involvement.

The earliest references Stuart can find mention a Queen’s Mill in 1570, and a flour mill in a 1742 enclosure act document. These were thought to lie just upstream of the present mill. In 1774 William Long rebuilt a mill, with mention of an adjoining paper mill.  There are still mulberry trees nearby which would have provided a raw material for paper making.

Stuart’s earliest pictorial image of the mill is an 1833 engraving.  This shows what could be a belfry on the roof which may explain the name “Bell Mills”.

Stuart said that by the 1780’s the local Porter family had bought an interest in the mill. By 1792 it was a 5 story woollen cloth mill. After some financial problems the mill was reported as grinding grain again by 1818.

The Bradshaw family were involved in forestry trades until the Enclosure Acts of the late 1700’s swept away their livelihoods.  Stuart has found out that William Bradshaw was working at the Upper Dean windmill in 1790 and founded a milling dynasty, and Benjamin Bradshaw ran the Perio water mill in Fotheringey in the late 1800’s.

Benjamin’s son Eleazor B Bradshaw moved to Driffield in 1875 as manager and by 1906 owned the mill and the freehold. In 1949 an overheating bearing caused a devastating fire that destroyed the mill. It took 2 years to rebuild due to post war shortages, but the result was Europe’s first all metal mill.

Stuart was able to show several photographs charting the development of the mill from 1906 up to 2018 commissioning of the “C” mill.

Stuart says among current concerns are the availability, cost and security of electrical power and diesel fuel, and the reducing armoury of plant protection products available to farmers. He would love to see water power used again to supplement the mill’s needs but it has proved difficult to get approval for this from the controlling agencies.

The Scribe, Bro Garry Sunley, gave the vote of thanks for a fascinating story that answered many questions.