This is an old and unusual car, part of which was built at the following Carshalton location. Read on to find out more…
The photo below is taken from the wooden bridge over the River Wandle, just off Mill Lane, facing Papermill Close. Below that, is the same view taken years earlier, when it was an industrial location.
A View from the Past
Nearly 100 years ago, standing on this same bridge, you would have seen the Grove Mill Ironworks in the distance, roughly where the modern homes sit today.
The wooden mill was originally built in the 1770s and converted to an iron mill in the 1860s.
Before that, it was used for grinding a variety of materials — including, you guessed it, snuff.
The aerial shots above of the ironworks, dated 1935, shows a stream at the bottom — technically a mill pond at the time — which still occasionally runs alongside the Westcroft after heavy rain.
The mill employed an ‘overshot’ water wheel, where water fed from the top flows forward over the wheel. This design didn’t require a rapid flow, making it very efficient — perfect for Carshalton’s conditions.
Innovation and Industry
Carshalton’s ironworks used water power to operate tools and heat furnaces to manufacture iron products. Among the items produced were patented inventions such as early car engines and steam-driven pumps.
One prominent company, John Smith and Co., created engine parts specifically for the Hyler Whyte vehicle pictured above — considered by many to be the world’s first kit car, dating to around 1899.
Today, an empty stream recalls the water that once powered the mill. A historic photo from the 1910s below, shows the ironworks chimney in the background, a reminder of the industrial past that has now mostly disappeared.
The wooden building burnt down in the 1940s, and most of the old structures have been demolished. There are still traces of the old water wheel foundations.
*I aim to get the facts as accurate as possible, but can’t be certain, as I write these fairly quickly. Sources: Grace’s Guide. If you have further clarifications or found this interesting, please enter your comment below. Thanks.
The new vintage motorcycle that was conceived in Carshalton 95 years ago
