Albion Mills, Southwark, Industrial flour mill in Southwark, England
Albion Mills was a pioneering steam-powered flour mill built in 1786 at the southeastern side of Blackfriars Bridge in London. The building housed advanced machinery with cast iron cogs, shafts, and wheels driven by two steam engines to grind grain into flour.
Samuel Wyatt designed this groundbreaking facility in 1786 as one of England's first commercial steam mills. A devastating fire destroyed it completely in 1791, cutting short what had been an influential operation.
The site shaped how people in London imagined industrial progress and manufacturing power in their city. Its appearance in poems and descriptions helped define what a modern factory meant to the public.
The site today is only a memory of what once stood at the southeastern edge of Blackfriars Bridge, where you can imagine the old mill's position. A marker or plaque in the area may identify the location for those interested in industrial history.
The mill featured an integrated automated system that lifted, fanned, sifted, and processed grain before lowering it directly into barges waiting below. This seamless grain handling was so advanced for its time that it served as a model for future industrial automation.
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