An Apprentice's Letter - 1877
An extract from “Twelve Generations” Compiled by John Coales.
In 1877, a young Newport Pagnell man, Walter John (Jack) Coales, was lodging at Isham whilst serving an apprenticeship at the nearby mill at Burton Latimer belonging to T. & J. Wallis.
This extract is from a letter to his grandparent describing activities at the mill, which was in the process of being modernised.
October 22 1877
Isham
My dear Grandpapa,
I am very much obliged to you for your kind present.
We have not quite finished the floors of the mill, we hope to be finished by the end of the week; they are made of broken bricks and cement in arches; we make the arch of planks & then put the bricks and cement on it until it is quite set and then take the boards away.
I don’t know whether Father told you about the mill. The stones are upright instead of flat on the ground: we have 3 pairs of stones, they will do the same amount of work as 9 pair of the old fashioned sort. They use all steam, two engines, one horizontal the other a beam; the beam is worked by the waste steam of the horizontal. which is 25 horse power, & the horizontal 45, so we get 25 horse power for nothing.
At the top of the arch it is only 5 inches thick; it is wonderful the weight they will carry. In one room we have 9 bins made of sheet iron each weighing a ton & these will hold 140 sacks of wheat [these would weigh 15.75 tons] each so they must he very strong. The mill is close against Isham station, so we have a line made so that trucks can come to the door of the mill; that saves a great deal of trouble.
I hope Grandmamma is quite well & Auntie & Uncle and all
When will Mr Taylor go into his new house, I suppose not before next spring. I think Uncle will go into his house in a few weeks
Please give my best love to Grandmamma, Auntie, Uncle & yourself
I am dear Grandpapa
Your affectionate Grandson
Walter John Coales
Jack Coales’ sketch of the method of erecting floors at Burton Latimer Mill.
