Hello

We need help finding an address that was from around 1962.  The address we have is 5 Paper Mills, Cleobury Mortimer.  It belonged to a musical conductor by the name of W. Penrose, father of pianist Billy Penrose.  We have had no luck searching on maps and hope you may have knowledge on
whether this address (or the road) still exists.  Any information on the Penrose family would be helpful as there are limited resource available in Australia to assist us.

Many thanks
Amanda Mallaburn

I can't help you personnally, Amanda, but we have a lot of readers in the Cleobury Mortimer area, so, hopefully, one of those will be able to tell us both more about the Penrose family. However, the address does remind me of the once important paper industry in that area, as this extract from the Shropshire Archaeological Transaction shows:-
"mmm "In directories and other records of the last century, the Neen Savage paper mills are frequently referred to as though they were situated at Cleobury Mortimer. There is some reason for this, as they stood on the River Rea, between the two townships, and one of them stood almost on the borders of Cleobury Mortimer. It is possible, also, that there was another paper-mill in Cleobury Mortimer itself, although no definite evidence to this effect has ben obtained."
Tmmm The owners of the mills was Thomas Lambert Hall. The Rev. W.G.D. Fletcher states that the manor, hall and estate of Stepple (Neen Savage) were purchased by Hall in 1816. It seems that Hall had two mills, one of which burnt down in the year of Queen Victoria's Jubilee, the other eventually fell into decay. The Rev. S.F.F.Auchmuty, a former vicar of Cleobury Mortimer, refers to these mills, and says that ... "for some years after I came here in 1897 (they) existed in ruins. Eventually they were pulled down and the materials, as I understand, were largely used in the restoration of Bayton Church."
Although it is not known when these mills were established, the first record of them occurred in 1822 in Pigot's Directory. On the 22nd July, 1835, The Salopian Journal records the death of William, son of Mr Hall, paper manufacturer, Cleobury Mortimer. By 1868, according to Slaters' Directory, the mills had been taken over by John Billing (brother of a Martin Billing who manufactured paper at Tibberton)
,mmm In the 1885 and 1890 editions of the Directory of Paper Makers lists the firm of Brown and Cranston (late Leather Paper Ltd.) at Mill No. 661, Cleobury Mortimer. The mill then had two machines (60 & 54 inches) and two vats, and was worked by steam and water. The products were specifically, pink, white and coloured blottings, pure white and other filtering papers, patent leather paper and boards, and patent panels.
mmm In addition to the mills on the Cleobury Mortimer/Neen Savage border, there were also papers mills not far away in Hopton Wafers. One of the earliest records is of Sarah Hyde, the wife of Richard Hyde, lord of the manor of Hopton Wafers, was accidentally killed in a paper-mill there and was buried on 24th December, 1723.
mmm In 1756, the Hopton Wafers mills were leased from the last of the Hyde family by Joseph Oldham, a hop merchant of Bewdley. Oldham seems to have been something of an entrepreneur. He was born in Nottinghamshire, sometime before 1739. He settled in Bewdley where his uncle had an extensive hop business. On leasing the paper-mills he settled there and built a house. Later he purchased the manor of Cainham, and, in 1788 he served as Sheriff of Shropshire. Later he settled in Somerset and died in 1809. During his time at Hopton Wafers, Oldham went into partnership with Thomas Compson, (Sheriff in 1792), who was also his brother-in-law. It is unlikely that either had previous experience of the paper industry, instead seeing it as an investment and allowing someone else to run the mills. This someone else may have been William Nichols, who is recorded as 'of Hopton, paper-maker' on a marriage record of 1759.
mmm In 1798, Hopton Court and estate were purchased by Thomas Botfield who had made his money from coal-mining in the Clee Hill collieries. Botfleld was another busy man as he took out patents for inventions in iron-work, partnered his brother in a banking business at Shifnal, manufactured paper, and earned distinction as a geologist and horticulturist.
mmm In 1824, the mills were taken over by Richard, William, and Henry Nichols. At this time there were no less than three paper mills in Hopton Wafers, all within a few hundred yards of each other. The Lower Mill stood just above the bridge on the main road through the village; the Middle Mill stood at the other end of the same large field, beside the road leading to Hopton Court; and the Upper Mills stood higher up the stream. This last mill burnt down in 1826 and was never rebuilt.
mmm During the 1830's the mills started to have difficulties with transport, both in bringing in raw materials and in transporting finished products. In 1840 the Nichols brothers closed down the remaining two mills. The closing of these mills would have caused severe unemployment in the area as they were quite labour intensive.
mmm Although there are no visible remains of the paper mills in the Cleobury Mortimer area, I would like to think that paper making will, one day, be a local industry again. I think it would be nice to print Shropshire Unfolded on locally made paper. - T.C.