Mill Street and Early Industrial Development

Mill Street and Early Industrial Development. . At the time of the Domesday Survey, Maidstone had six mills; at least one of these was probably on this site. Certainly the Medieval Archbishops' mills were sited here, and the stretch of water between Palace Avenue and Rootes Garage is the old millpond., A Milling Hub , Until the end of the 19th century there were two mills in Mill Street one on the west side of the road straddling the River Len, and one on the east side near the present junction with Palace Avenue (which is a new street created in the early 20th Century)., The mills disappeared around 1904 when Mill Street was widened and straightened to accommodate a new tram line., Beneath the modern bridge carrying Mill Street/Bishops' Way, the original Medieval bridge with pointed arches is preserved, which gave access to the Archbishop's Palace. It can be seen by descending the steps in the Palace Gardens behind the Gate House., Mills have generated a major part of Maidstone's growth over the centuries. Agricultural mills developed, then some changed to fulling mills with the discovery of Fullers Earth, which helped with the process of cleaning wool. In later years, some mills were converted to produce paper., The most famous of these was Whatman Paper Mill which is approximately ½ mile downstream from this point. Famous users of Whatman paper include Thomas Gainsborough, JMW Turner, William Blake, Queen Victoria and Napoleon.