Gloucestershire mill named one of the country's most endangered Victorian buildings

Tewksbury's Healings Flour Mill and Warehouses was once a local gem

Healings Flour Mill and Warehouses in Tewksbury
Author: Radina KoutsaftiPublished 14th Dec 2021
Last updated 14th Dec 2021

A Gloucestershire mill has made the list of the Top 10 most endangered buildings in the country, according to the Victorian Society.

Tewksbury's Healings Flour Mill and Warehouses was once considered to be the largest and most advanced mill in the country.

At its peak in 1892 it was capable of producing 25 sacks of flour an hour.

Operations ceased in 2006, and the complex of buildings is now derelict.

Some other buildings in the South and South west making the list were also the Jones & Higgins Department Store in London and the Minley Home Farm in Hampshire.

Victorian Society president Griff Rhys Jones said: "Healings Mill represents Tewkesbury and the surrounding area's agricultural and industrial past and is a source of pride for many people who live around it.

"The mill's riverside location and attractive architecture, make it ideal for repurposing to breathe new life into the area.

"Its grand scale gives it the potential to become a focal point for the community, with space for small businesses, homes, leisure facilities or even a museum."

Mr Jones also said that "urgent action" is needed to save the Mill from deteriorating further and facing total demolition.

"We hope a developer will see the potential in repurposing this wonderful building," he added.

The Top 10 most endangered Victorian buildings in England and Wales:

Coal Drops, Halifax

Halifax Coal Drops were built for the Ovenden and Halifax Junction Railway Co. in 1874 and are an important part of the town's industrial history.

Horncliffe House, Lancashire

Horncliffe House was originally built in 1869 as a private dwelling for Henry Hoyle Hardman, a local mill owner and businessman,

Healings Flour Mill and Warehouses, Tewkesbury

Healings Flour Mill and Warehouses was designed by W.H. James of Tewkesbury for Samuel Healing and Son and was built circa 1865.

Icknield Street School, Birmingham

The Icknield Street School was designed by J.H. Chamberlain of Martin and Chamberlain in 1883 who created several of Birmingham's now listed or lost Victorian buildings.

Indoor Market, Burslem, Stoke on Trent

Burslem indoor market's gothic design and ironwork that was built in 1897 is reminiscent of King's Cross station in London.

Jones & Higgins Department Store, London

The Jones and Higgins Department store opened on the corner of Rye Lane and Peckham High Street in 1867 and formed a key part of a 'Golden Mile' of shops that rivalled Oxford Street. The clock tower was designed by Southwark architects Henry Jarvis & Sons.

Minley Home Farm, Hampshire

The Minley Home Farm was completed circa 1896 to the designs of Arthur Castings, associate to the renowned George Devey, who worked on other buildings in the estate.

Oldham Equitable Cooperative Society (Hill Stores), Oldham

Oldham Equitable Cooperative Society (Hill Stores) commissioned Thomas Taylor to build what would be one of the largest buildings in the area, it was then completed in 1900.

Church of St Helen, Biscathorpe, Lincolnshire

The Church of St Helen, Biscathorpe was rebuilt on the site of the old church in 1847 by W.A. Nicholson in a fanciful Gothic style.

Whitchurch Hospital, Cardiff

Architects Oatley and Skinner of Bristol designed the hospital with its ornate interiors in 1902. It first opened in 1908 as 'Cardiff Lunatic Asylum', in the typical style for medical facilities.

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