Lion Mills from Angle Common.

There was a Water -powered fulling mill recorded as being disused in Soham as early as 1450, that mill is possibly the predecessor of the Water Mill here today, also shown on a map of 1656 with the name Robert Hammond Esq. in the same position as the mill today. Later in 1811 it was rebuilt in brick by John Dobede, who had a substantial business as a corn merchant. From c.1780 supplying large amounts of flour to Sohams workhouse. The Dobede's Water mill was leased out to professional millers by 1851, and remained part of the large Dobede estate here in Soham, until its sale in 1876, when it also used steam power. Alfred Clark in 1864, took on the lease of the Dobede Water mill, he sent flour by barges along the Soham river to the railway at Ely. It was then bought, in partnership with his brother in law H A Butcher. After the railway reached Soham in 1879, Alfred Clark opened a London warehouse. In 1885 he had installed at the mill a roller mill of his own design, a wheat silo being added in 1890. Generated his own electricity from 1883, Clark & Butcher became a limited company by 1904, Alfred Clark died in 1906, the mill was continued by three generations of his male line. The light railway that used to be at the mill, linked to the main railway. The mill was destroyed by fire in 1945, and rebuilt in 1946 - 1948, it was called the Lion Mills by 1976, employing 70 people, processing 75,000 tons of local grain yearly into animal feed, in the 1980's it diversified into agrochemicals & fertilisers, by 1995 its main product was animal feed, made from grain stored in 12 tall metal silos,
Finally closing early 2005. At the moment "June 2007" the Mill is being investigated by archaeologists, it will be then demolished to make way for houses.

Update 20th October 2007 approx 30% of site has been demolished.
Update 6th November 2007 approx 70% of site has been demolished.
Update 22nd March 2008 approx 95% of site has been demolished, houses have already been built on part of the cleared site.

To the left shows the Dobede Water mill in about 1867, rebuilt in brick by John Dobede in 1811, and leased by Alfred Clark in 1864. On the right shows he Mill pond at the Lion mills.

Lion Mills as it is today, taken from the bridge over the Soham Lode, which leads to Angle Common, the image on the left shows the offices etc, on the right shows part of the  Mill. The Mill once had an 18 foot water wheel, driving 4 pairs of stones, and an engine driving 3 pairs of stones.

The following photo's were taken on a visit to the Mill on the 10th October 2005. A big thank you to Clark & Butcher's for showing us around, and allowing us to take some photo's, We hope to take some more in the near future before the Mill is demolished.

On the left shows the office's of Clarke & Butchers. The right shows the large Silo's, 12 in total, that can be seen from miles around.

The photos on the left and right show two more view's from the rear of the property.

Two more view's of the rear of Clark and Butcher's and some of the derelict buildings in the right hand photo.

The Building on these two photo's ( front & rear views ) on close study is a fragment of the large building in the photo below, that was built in 1811, the house to the right of the building on the photo below still remains, and is still adjoined to the building on the photo's above, looking at the photo on the right you can still see on the water line   of the building where the Mill wheel would have been, in the same location as the photo below. and the bricked up arch between the 2 windows just above the steel walkway, and the sluice gate on the left hand side, taking in mind that we are looking at the back of the building shown to the left.

The left hand photo is a view up Soham Lode from the rear of the Mill, where it would have supplied water for the Mill Wheel.  On the right shows a view towards the offices with the weighbridge building to the left.

One of the last recently used warehouses, On the right shows an empty space now, but would have housed all the machinery that was being used in the last few years before the Mill's closure.

The offices of Clark and Butchers, once the home of Alfred & Adelaide Clark. On the right a  view of the weighbridge and office.

A view on leaving Clark & Butchers also known as the Lion Mills, looking towards where the original Water Mill would have stood, the Mill pond being on the right behind the weighbridge office.