River Meden, Thoresby Estate.

 

 Above: The River Meden as it passes Thoresby Hall (2018).

 The River Meden, called the River Medin as late as the 16th century, winds a picturesque course from where once stood the stone Mills and cottages of Warsop, through Budby, before being dammed to form Thoresby Lake, and then continuing its journey through Thoresby Estate to Perlethorpe, soon after which it merges with the rivers Maun and Poulter. It was this reliable source of water which must have attracted Saxon and probably earlier Viking settlements in the area.

Above: The River Meden's winding journey through Thoresby made several small bridges necessary. The above photograph (1984) shows the view from atop Perlethorpe Bridge.

 

Above: There was once a mill on the side of this river, next to Home Farm, and powered by a water wheel. In 1875 one George Mawson started work there. This is long since gone, but the region still retains small lock gates which help control the flow. In 1862 the mill was described as having two grey millstones, two French buhr stones (said to produce a superior wheat product), and a Gorse Bruising Machine, the latter of which rendered a gorse bush into a palatable thorn-free food supplement for horses and cows when mixed with chopped hay or straw during those months when green forage might be thin on the ground. Dairymen were also of the opinion it made the milk richer and tastier.

Above: We know from records, and Leonard Knyff’s painting of 1705, that a straight canal once led from the very first Thoresby Hall, through the Mill, and on to the Kennels. The relationship between that canal and the Meden itself, remains very hard to ascertain. However, long since abandoned lock gates can still be viewed in the nearby field, weather permitting.