Category: Gems of the Archive

A lonely fight for survival

“Newport’s cattle market had not seen anything like it before. There, talking business among the weather-beaten faces of Isle of...

She’s a jolly miller

“With flour-dust sprinkled in her greying hair and a beaming smile [she] runs, all alone, the centuries-old watermill of Thunder...

Breathing fire

Transport links are the lifeline of milling. This photograph shows a steam wagon outside Sonning watermill. The wagon is called...

Mill of old age

Some mills have miraculous powers. This postcard was produced by the Belgium publisher Marco Marchovici in the early 20th century....

Appreciative penmanship

After a lifetime of milling, William Cornwell was presented with this attractive certificate. This attractive certificate was presented to William...

Unfolding a new era

You never know what may lie inside an advertisement. This Gem is a trade card for Washburn Crosby Company Flour...

Your fate is like that of man

“You worked blindly and towards an unknown end; but your end was certain.” This beautiful watercolour is from a collection...

A direct hit

‘By a piece of singular good fortune, no one was killed.’ This book called A Train Errant shines a light on a...

Germans reborn

Mills are often used as a symbol of rebirth. This intriguing Gem is a pre-First World War postcard entitled ‘The...

A brush with death

“It was then that she heard the bloodcurdling screams of her stricken husband.” This contemporary sketch was sold following a...

Catgerories