Aylsham Watermill
Aylsham Watermill
The Mill's reflective beauty
The quiet stillness of the water at the mill now belies the industrial history of this area which would have been noisy and very busy.
Barclay, Pallet and Co. workers
Barclay and Pallet owned the mill and produced animal feed. The interior remodelling in 1953 saw the installation of new pelleting machines that ran on electricity.
The HGVs of their day
The very traditional Norfolk wherries – with their huge dark sails – carried cargo to and from the mill. Thanks to the navigation, the wherries could travel as far as Yarmouth – a journey which would take a week.
Aylsham Watermill
A mill has probably stood on this site since Saxon times, and it is mentioned in the Domesday book of 1086.
The Parmeter family owned the watermill for many years from 1771 to the middle of the 19th century. Robert Parmeter Jnr commissioned a replacement building which had four floors, two undershot water wheels and five pairs of grinding wheels. When Robert died in 1831 his brother Samuel took over and went into partnership with the Bullock brothers, eventually selling to them in 1856.
It was bought by Barclay, Pallet and Co in 1914 and the mill was used for animal food manufacture. It was remodelled again in1953 and still had one remaining wheel in use, despite mains electricity.
The mill was finally vacated in 1967 and has now been converted into private houses.
Teucer Wilson
Hidden among the quiet lanes near Aylsham, the workshop of master stone carver Teucer Wilson is where ancient stone is transformed into lasting works of art. From his North Farm studio near Burgh-next-Aylsham, he creates memorials, sculptures and public artworks in slate, marble and sandstone.
For Aylsham's Heritage Snail Trail, Teucer hand-carved six heritage snail plaques, using beautiful British stone including Purbeck marble, Derbyshire fossil stone and Welsh slate. Apprentice Mirella McGee and assistant Dan Meek completed the remaining carvings from his template. As the stones were polished, fossils millions of years old were revealed.
Trained in Dorset and London before establishing his Norfolk workshop in 2000, Teucer's work can be seen at Norwich Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Highgate Cemetery and many other public spaces. In 2025, he was honoured as a Royal Designer for Industry, recognising his outstanding contribution to British design.
All historical images reproduced here courtesy of Aylsham Town Archive, a part of Aylsham Town Council
