Discover the history of the Moulin de Souchières!
The origin of the mill
It all began around 1812, when Etienne SOUCHIERE received permission to build a martellière (a structure to distribute irrigation water) on the Gaffins Canal with a view to establishing a grain mill. Le Moulin de Souchières, named after its founder Etienne Souchiere, was built in 1814 on Etienne’s estate, on the right bank of the canal, in Entraigues sur la Sorgue.
The emergence of the culture of the Madder
At the time, the cultivation of madder, a plant used to make red dye, was booming. Etienne Souchière, who also joined in the madness of madder, planned to add a grinding mill to his plant.
Did you know that madder red was used to dye the uniform trousers of French soldiers at the beginning of World War I ?
On 14 May 1818, the royal notary Claude Bourdon (Bourdon… a distant ancestor of Philippe perhaps ?) took stock of the situation : Souchiere Etienne, a landowner from Entraigues, had obtained concessions (in 1812 and 1814) to cut off the Gaffins canal to channel water through a special canal located on his property. The water was used either for irrigation or to power his grain mill. The mayor of Entraigues, Dominique Pigeon, authorised Etienne to establish his madder mill. So from 1819 to 1826, Etienne ground madder.
The cultivation and processing of madder was highly developed in the Vaucluse. By 1839, there were 50 madder mills in Vaucluse. But like the mill wheel, the wheel of fortune turned : madder, too expensive, was abandoned in favour of a synthetic dye. Farmers then turned to horticulture, which continues to this day. During your holiday at our Mill, you can buy fresh and locally grown fruit and vegetables from our local farmers at the market !
The manufacture of paper
Returning to the history of the Moulin de Souchières, we can see that from the 1870s, the mills were industrially converted for paper production.
The Moulin de Souchières produced pulp for the paper mill in the nearby hamlet of Saint Albergaty situated at the end of the road.
The mill’s workers were housed here on site next to the mill, in small houses built especially for them. After the 1939-1945 war, the paper mill was bought by the Navarre family, after which it remained in operation for about 30 years.
One of the mill’s former workers told us that in the 1960s, the small houses next to the mill were demolished. The stones from these houses were used to build the wall that still serves as a fence around the garden in front of the mill.
A short walk outside the gate to the left brings you to the hamlet of Saint Albergaty. At the end of the long straight road, the first thing you see is the former monastery from 1350, and the former paper mill and bridge built by monks.
The hamlet has been brought back to life by its passionate residents, who love both the beauty of the surroundings and the extraordinary architecture, an amazing mix of Renaissance and 19th-century styles. The monastery, a farmhouse and the former factory have now been converted into beautiful private homes, only the imposing chimney is still a reminder of the former activity in the paper mill…
In Fontaine de Vaucluse you can still see a working paper mill, a fun and educational (and free) visit where you can learn all about the traditional paper-making process.
The reconversion
When we moved here in 2001, there was no longer a mill wheel. Thanks to traces of the old wheel found on the canal walls, we had a new wheel built to bring the history of the mill back to life.
Here are a few photos of its installation in summer 2005, oh la la, we were so young ! Our 2 daughters, Yoline and Lilly, are now 21 and 24, time flies… As Lilly was already a keen climber, we quickly added a safety fence to make the area safer, both for her and for our younger guests.
The canal was condemned in the 1960s, when the mill ceased operations. One of our plans for the next few years is to get the wheel turning again, and we’ll keep you posted !
In the meantime, we continue to welcome holidaymakers from all over the world to our Moulin for a unique experience, and we hope to welcome you soon !