As part of the Lewes History Group’s Street Stories series about our town, this book by Chris Taylor builds on earlier accounts of his research on the history of Mill Road in South Malling.
Mill Road leads uphill eastward from the A26 towards the path to Ringmer and the Sussex Wildlife Trust nature reserve. The road is easily overlooked by passersby travelling in and out of Lewes – at first sight there is nothing remarkable about the appearance of this residential street.
Take a walk along it however, and there is much to see and discover. The oldest complete structure on Mill Road is Mill House, built in the early 19th Century. Near Mill House stands the roundhouse which once formed the base of Malling Mill, an imposing windmill which stood for at least 300 years.
The houses and bungalows you see today on the lower part of the road date back to the 1920s and 1930s, while those towards the top were built in the 1970s and 1990s. At the bottom of Mill Road, a block of 1950s flats marks the site of the old Steam Laundry which served Lewes in the early part of the 20th century.
Published by the Lewes History Group, 10 September 2022. ISBN: 978-0-9956064-3-2
Available from the Lewes Tourist Information Centre at £7.50, or by mail-order.
Lewes History Group 