Swanton Morley Mill started out as a flour mill but finished its working life as a paper mill. It was newly built in 1776, probably as a result of a fire, only to be destroyed by fire once more in 1802. By 1812 it had been rebuilt as a paper mill measuring 40ft by 150ft and was operating using two wheels. No mention has been found after 1840 and it is assumed that it was demolished around that time.

On Monday last one Bacon Hibgame, (when a baker in Norwich) of St. Margaret's, Baker, was convicted before the Right Worshipful Mr. Mayor of selling one Loaf of Bread deficient in weight five ounces and a half and paid the Penalty of 17s 6d.
Norwich Mercury - 12th February 1757

Manors of Swanton Morley and Worthing; messuage; two water corn mills; a fulling mill and 24a.; dilapidated tenement; 3a. called Bradbury's tenement; the Lizard, 153a.; 104a. of meadow and pasture; 80a. of land; 40a. of other land; foldcourse of 800a.
Title Deeds: Swanton Morley, Hoe, and Worthing 1662 - 1881 - Norfolk Record Office

Conveyed by Thomas Bedingfield to William Small in 1663; conveyed by Laurence Whitwell and his sister Anne, devisees under Small's will, to Sir George Walker in 1676. Mortgaged by Walker to Joseph Bertham in 1679, and conveyed by Walker to Daniel Farrington in 1679. With deeds relating to mortgages on the property.
Title Deeds: Swanton Morley, Hoe, and Worthing 1662 - 1881 - Norfolk Record Office

Manors of Swanton Morley, Hoe Harfords, and Ingworth; capital messuage in Swanton Morley, messuage, messuage with water mill, messuage called New Castle House, and a decayed tenement, all in Swanton Morley, messuage in Worthing; messuage in Hoe, called Hoe Malthouse Farm,; messuage in Scarning; messuage in Ingworth; several closes of land in Oulton; messuage and land in Burnham; a moiety of the rectory and vicarage of Scarning.
Undated - Norfolk Record Office

Whereas the Co-partnership between Mr. Peter HALL and Mr. John WHITBY of this Town, Millers and Flour Merchants, in this day dissolved by mutual consent...
All debts to Peter HALL...

N.B. A sober Man of good character who understands buying wheat and manufacturing it into flour, and is capable of managing the Business of the Mill and keeping regular accounts, may have Employment and Encouragement suitable to his merit by applying to the said Peter HALL...
Norwich Mercury - 23rd July 1768

SWANTON MORLEY WATER MILL
...Mill is new built with all proper Machines for making Flour...
Now in the occupation of Mr. Bacon Hibgame
Norfolk Chronicle - 16th March 1776

SWANTON MORLEY
To be disposed of immediately, the Lease of SWANTON MILL with the going Geers, Stock etc. being the most capital Mill in the County, Lately new built with every Convenience & is now in a large & extensive Trade. If required part of the Purchase Money may remain.
For Further particulars enquire of BACON HIBGAME of Norwich or on the Premises. The best Price will be continued to be given for Wheat & the Trade continued as usual till disposed of.
N.B. This will be advertised no more.
Norfolk Chronicle - 28th October 1780

SWANTON MORLEY
Lease of Mills to be Sold
And entered upon immediately
The Lease of those very desirable MILLS situate in Swanton Morley, Norfolk, now used in the Manufactory of Paper upon a very extensive Scale with upwards of 70 acres of very good Land adjoining.
Apply to FOSTER, Son & Attornies, Norwich.
Norfolk Chronicle - 11th August 1787

SWANTON MORLEY
Mills to be Sold by Auction at the Blue Bell on Hog Hill, Norwich 3rd September 1787
Norfolk Chronicle - 18th August 1787

All Persons indebted to MACKLASHAM & EDWARDS of Swanton, Norfolk, Paper Makers...
Debts to FOSTERS...
Norfolk Chronicle - 25th August 1787

Robert MACKLASHAN & John EDWARDS...
Bankrupts.
Norfolk Chronicle - 15th September 1787

A fire occurred at Swanton paper mill, a great part of which was destroyed with all the paper.
The damage was estimated at £4000.
Norfolk Chronicle - 31st May 1802 (Per Charles MACKIE's NORFOLK ANNALS, 1901)

In 1783 Ralph Buck of Stoke Holy Cross mill and Robert Macglashan of Norwich insured a paper-mill at Swanton Morley (Shorter). Buck died the following year and Mackglashan joined in partnership with John Edwards. Unfortunately they were very soon bankrupt and their stock was advertised in the Norfolk Chronicle of 28th April 1788 as to be peremptorily sold by auction.

At this time Swanton mill seems to have produced mainly glazed paper for the use of hotpressers to the wool trade. This is shown by the fact that a fire was reported in the glazing mill at the paper-mill in 1784, and the vast majority of the paper advertised in 1788 was Hotpress paper. After the bankruptcy of Mackglashan and Edwards, Swanton mill was taken over by a partnership between William Tooke Robberds, a Norwich bookseller, and Joshua Furness a paper-maker. Robberds advertised to this effect in 1790, whilst Shorter notes that Furness was at the mill in 1791 and he illustrates the watermark 'Furness & Robberds' as used in 1798. This firm continued into the nineteenth century, later with the addition of a third partner George Furness. The partnership was finally dissolved in 1809, an announcement being made in the London Gazette for the 18th November.

The next known paper-maker at Swanton was James Rump, who was earlier in partnership with Dusautoy at Lyng. He is listed as the proprietor of the mill in the 1830 and 1836 Norfolk directories, but neither he nor the mill are mentioned in 1845. Fortunately there is a great deal of information available on the size and siting of this mill, in the form of two plans, both of which were drawn up in the 1830s. The first of these shows the mill in relation to the river Wensum and the ownership of surrounding lands. The second is on a much larger scale and shows the ground plan of the mill. The plans make it clear that the mill was the property of Edward Lombe Esq., but Rump owned nearby buildings and land, and was undoubtedly the tenant there.

Swanton mill can be very briefly described as a building of about 150ft by 40ft sited on a dam across the Wensum. In addition to this main building there was an attached drying house on the east bank of the river, and an attached building called 'the Sall' on the west bank. This appears to have had a furnace. The mill itself was divided into a bleach house, a sizing house, a white mill, and largest of all a brown mill. There were two water-wheels, the larger serving an 'engine house' situated in the brown mill, and the smaller serving a separate small engine in the white mill. There are also several unmarked and separate buildings that may well have been warehouse and office accommodation.
David Stoker

William Tooley Robberds lived from 1763 to 1849. He was the second son of John Robberds and Mary Anne Tooley. In his will he bequeathed all his arable and meadow lands situate at Swanton Morley.
The lands were valued and offered for sale to his grandson, Thomas Robberds Woodrow.

I always thought there must have been something there - we know the people who live beside the river there.
One of our builders went swimming two summers ago when it was very hot and dived into the river where you have shown there to have once been a mill and scalped himself neatly and cleanly. It was a round steel post on the bottom of the river.
Stephen Vince, Bylaugh Hall - 23rd June 2007

Index of wills 1670: John Roote

14th July 1768: Dissolution of partnership of Peter Hall & John Whitby, millers & flour merchants

1776: 'New built' as Flour Mill

1776: Bacon Hibgame, flour miller

1780: Bacon Hibgame, flour miller

1783: Insured as paper mill by Ralph Buck & Robert Macglashan

1784: Fire in the glazing mill section

1784: Ralph Buck died

1787: Mackglasham & Edwards, paper makers

September 1787: Robert Mackglasham & John Edwards - bankrupt

1790: William Tooley Robberds & Joshua Furness

Faden's map 1797: Swanton Paper Mill

1798: Furness & Robberds watermark in use

May 1802: Destroyed by fire

London Gazette 18th November 1809: Notice re dissolution of partnership of William Tooley Robberds, Joshua Furness & George Furness

1812: Rebuilt by this time

Bryant's map 1826: Swanton Paper Mill

1830: James Rump

White's 1836: Edward Lombe Esq. (owner), On the Wensum is a large paper mill. James Rump, paper manufacturer

c.1840: Mill demolished for reasons unknown