Place Name
Industrial heritage. A reference to the former paper mill that once straddled the River Wandle. It is thought to have been built by landowner Thomas Scawen who leased it to John Taylor in 1744, he in turn sublet it to William Herbert, a stationer, of Monument Yard, Gracechurch Street. When Herbert passed away he left the mill to his eldest son, Robert, who carried on the business. But when he died, in 1776, the business and lease (which had been renewed several times over the decades) were sold to a William Curteis, of Clapham. Six years later the paper mill, together with other properties, were bought by George Ansell, a local calico printer. Curteis remained as a tenant and ran the paper mill with his sons, William, John, and Thomas. The business, Curteis and Sons, became known for its high quality white paper. The mill remained in the family until 1815 when one James Ansell was declared bankrupt and the premises sold. The Ansell family remained involved with the mill for a few years but by 1818 it was fully in the hands of a stationer Nathaniel Muggeridge. The Muggeridge family held on to the business for several generations. By 1899 the mill was in the hands of Andrew Cornwallis Miller and the business was said to make some six tons a week of “hand made writing and account Book papers, Banks and Loans.” And the mill was described as “noted because here they make the finest handmade foolscap in the Kingdom” using the watermark C.Ansell. Despite being the last mill in the county to make hand-made paper, it closed down in 1905 and the lease was offered for sale by auction, although there were no buyers. The Ansell name however lived on in stationery for a few more years but the firm when it moved to the City, but it went into voluntary liquidation on July 17, 1929. As for the mill, it went through a number of hands serving different purposes but was eventually sold in December 1991, after which the site and adjoining areas was developed for housing accommodation.
