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External links: | The Non-Designated Heritage Assets West of Ifield | Ifield Parish boundary walk | Ifield Water Mill 1890's to 1990's | Ifield Steam Mill | Ifield Millhouse from the air: 1939 and 2014 | The Iron Industry in Crawley | The Six Moated Manors of Crawley | The toponymy of Crawley: Why is it called that? | Crawley from the air 1920 to 1954 | The original plans for the Arun Valley railway line to Horsham


Ifield Parish Map
Ifield Millpond

Probably the most widely known feature in the Parish is Ifield Millpond, but how many people know of it's long history of industrial activity? The earliest relic found in the area is a late 12th century medieval iron bloomery which was discovered during 2014/15 whilst the pond was drained to enable work to be carried out on the dam. This, along with an adjacent bloomery of either the 13th or 15th century, were found next to what was the original path of Ifield Brook before the shallow valley was dammed to create what we now know as the Millpond. Further bloomeries from the same eras have been found alongside Broadfield Brook and the Douster Brook in Bewbush, just before both enter the millpond, and there are undoubtedly many more yet to be discovered.

 

The pond was constructed in the late 1560s and Ifield Forge, powered by the pond, was in operation by 1569 as a finery forge for the pig iron produced at nearby Bewbush Furnace. The forge, which was on land owned by the Crown at the time, was destroyed by Sir William Waller's Parliamentarian troops in 1643 during the English Civil War and was not used again. The charred remains of the forge and one of the wheelpits, as well as the sluice for this wheel, were discovered during the 2014/15 works where the new spillway now flows. The area of the second wheelpit was not excavated and it will still be in situ under the modern pathway between the two spillways. The timber framed house on the banks of the pond, known as The Millhouse and until recently a public house, was the iron masters house and is contemporary with the forge. See The Iron Industry In Crawley for more details about Ifield Forge and other iron working sites locally spanning over 2,000 years.

 

The first corn mill was constructed on the site in 1660 where the forge stood, but this was replaced in 1683 by a larger building on the site of the present mill, which was constructed in 1817. The date stone in the front wall of the present mill was taken from the 1683 build and contains the initials of Thomas & Mary Middleton who built the second mill. Ifield Mill ceased to be a commercial operation in 1925. The mill, believed to be the only working watermill in West Sussex which is still powered by it's original water source, was restored during the 1970s, with the work commencing in 1974. It is now in the custody of Crawley Museum and is open to the public on the last Sunday of each month between April & September, with occasional extra days. See the Museum website for full details.

 

Today Ifield Millpond, split into southern and northern ponds when the Arun Valley railway line was constructed during the 1840s and home to many species of water birds, is considered to be the most important wetland site in Crawley. As a consequence it has been designated as a Site of Nature Conversation Importance and if you're really lucky, you may catch sight of a Kingfisher. A growing population of Cormorants, a small group of Herons, Swans, Moorhens, Coots, Grebes and many different species of Gulls, Ducks and Geese all call Ifield Millpond home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A view from the southern end of Ifield Court Farm, near The Maples

 

 

An 'Ancient Ifield' Exhibition was held at Crawley Museum between 5 June and 5 July 2025. The posters that were on display at this exhibition can be downloaded from here. The video that was shown, including a version with an alternative soundtrack, along with the trailer used to promote it can be viewed here.

 

Text & photographs © Ian Mulcahy. Contact photos@iansapps.co.uk or visit my 'Use of my photographs' page for licensing queries. Kingfisher photographs © Dale Baldwin.