The mill to the east may have been the location of an early mill opened by the Towle family and utilised the material from Thread Mill, but operations were moved into the heart of the village and a new workshop named Draycott Mill in 1814, the old mill was knocked down by the middle 20th century, while further expansion of the new village premises took place in the following years. Lyson’s Magna Britannia of 1817 then said of the time that the area was “chiefly inhabited by stocking-makers”. The area became a key centre for lace when Nottingham’s manufacturers began looking outside the city for cheaper labour in nearby towns and villages, towards the end of the 19th century in Draycott wages were half those. Sensing the trend, Draycott Mill converted some of its operations to the manufacture of lace by 1842. But demand was outstripping supply, and enterprising figures saw the need for additional capacity. A new mill using a novel way of hiring out not just space but also individual weaving machines was being built with Ernest Terah Hooley as an early investor and Ernest Jardine as eventual owner, and named to commemorate Queen Victoria’s 1887 Golden Jubilee, however a fire devastated the progress made and delayed building such that, when Victoria Mill was completed 19 years later in 1907, Edward VII had been on the throne for six years. There was however great local pride, with claims it was the largest lace manufacturing plant in Europe, with others suggesting the world. Crossings of the Derwent The Derwent river within the parish was notable in medieval times for being navigable between Wilne and Derby, but once the Derby Canal was in operation, meant it was far more convenient for transport for a much further distance, and the river was not used from that period on. A number of fords, bridges and ferries have existed throughout history, with two of these continuing to be used into the present day. There was a ford which crossed from the former Wilne Mills location to the Shardlow bank. It possibly dates from the Roman period, with certain usage in medieval times and was indicated on late 19th century Ordnance Survey maps. There is also Ambaston Ford which is at the end of a path leading from Nooning Lane, which is still indicated with depth poles so possibly passable at very low river