Nordelph Fen drainage mill was an octagonal white rendered brick based smock mill with a step on the second storey. By 1988 the mill had been truncated to the brick base and had an octagonal, pyramidal slate roof with a chimney stack in the centre. A flat roofed, single storey, brick and boarded extension had also been added. The mill stood to the south of the village nearly half a mile out into the fen.

The mill was built in the middle of Nordelph Fen and was almost certainly constructed to work in tandem with Nordelph Well Creek drainage mill on the bank of Well Creek. As the water level of the fen dropped, the Well Creek mill on the bank of the fen was unable to reach the water and so Nordelph Fen drainage mill was built in the middle of the fen, mideway between Well Creek and the Old Bedford river, to bring the water up a level to allow the older mill to discharge the water into Well Creek. The Ordnance Survey map of 1890-91 shows the Fen mill mill as Old Draining Pump. Both mills were truncated many years ago and were converted to private residences probably by the mid 1970s..

2 storey base only, converted into house. Octagonal with slight batter, white painted brick, octagonal-pyramidal grey slated roof with chimney in the middle. Nearly half mile out of fen south of village, alone by track with small outhouses. Private.
Arthur C. Smith - 19th May 1978

O.S. map 1885: Old Draining Pump

c.1975: Mill converted to residential accommodation

2005: Renovation of accommodation building work completed

Copyright © Jonathan Neville 2004