Charlton, Hertfordshire

Charlton is a village in Hertfordshire, England, which has steadily been approached by the neighbouring town of Hitchin. Despite Hitchin's growth, Charlton has retained its own identity. Home to a little fewer than fifty people, the village is remarkable because of its pub 'The Windmill', placed where no windmill ever stood. There was, however, until the 1970s, a water-wheel in the mill-race in the yard of Wellhead Farm. It should be noted that there are the remains of a windmill not half a mile from the pub after which it may have taken its name.

Charlton is the birthplace of inventor Henry Bessemer [1] and the mill-wheel was adapted by his grandfather to power a small foundry. The water-mill was therefore converted to a foundry during the occupancy of the Bessemer family and back to a mill again afterwards.

According to an article by Peter Harkness in Vol 1, No 1 of "Old Hitchin Life" the Harkness family's now world-famous rose-nursery was, in the late 19th century, based in Charlton as well as Bedale, in Yorkshire. With Robert Harkness moving into Charlton House (Bessemer's birthplace) in 1895. Coordinates: 51°56′N 0°17′W / 51.933°N 0.283°W / 51.933; -0.283

External links

• Media related to Charlton, Hertfordshire at Wikimedia Commons