Frogmore Paper Mill appeals for your help to survive after devastating fire six months ago

Clockwise from top left: The end wall of the mill now, exposed due to Visitor Centre demolition, the burnt shop, and the partially restored John Dickinson bust

Today (July 22) marks six months since Frogmore Paper Mill suffered a crushing blow when a devastating fire ripped through its visitor centre.

Home to the world’s first mechanised paper mill, the Apsley site was the birthplace of paper as we know it today.

But 700 square metres of the world heritage site was burnt down on January 22, including classrooms, offices, an art gallery, cafe and much of the museum collection.

Since that day, staff and volunteers have worked around the clock to save historic artefacts and clear the burnt remains off the site.

And in April, the mill launched a major fundraising campaign to help ensure its survival.

It set a £100,000 goal, with the money set to go towards creating a new visitor centre and community space with the possibility of a pop-up cafe or shop.

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Sue Woolnough, Education and Design Manager at the Paper Mill explained: "We need your help to continue our recovery, build a new entrance and keep the surviving Medieval and Victorian mill buildings and machinery intact.

"With your help, we can create a sustainable future for Frogmore, the birthplace of paper’s industrial revolution and the only remaining working paper mill in Hertfordshire. Our ambition is to become a world heritage site, celebrating our unique place in the history of education and communication.

"The first Fourdrinier paper machine was installed and operated here in 1803, bringing the world cheap, plentiful paper which shaped the society we live in today. Losing Frogmore would spell the end of the paper story in Hertfordshire, the place where it all began.”

You can donate online at the peper mill’s website.