River Mole, Surrey
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The River Mole is a
tributary A tributary, or an ''affluent'', is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream (''main stem'' or ''"parent"''), river, or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries, and the main stem river into which they ...
of the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
in
southern England Southern England, also known as the South of England or the South, is a sub-national part of England. Officially, it is made up of the southern, south-western and part of the eastern parts of England, consisting of the statistical regions of ...
. It rises in
West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...
near
Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport , also known as London Gatwick Airport (), is the Airports of London, secondary international airport serving London, West Sussex and Surrey. It is located near Crawley in West Sussex, south of Central London. In 2024, Gatwic ...
and flows north-west through
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
for to the
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...
at
Hampton Court Palace Hampton Court Palace is a Listed building, Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. Opened to the public, the palace is managed by Historic Royal ...
. The river gives its name to the
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
district of
Mole Valley Mole Valley is a local government district in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Dorking, and the district's other town is Leatherhead. The largest villages are Ashtead, Fetcham and Great Bookham, in the northern third of the district. ...
. The Mole crosses the
North Downs The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Areas of Outstanding Natural Be ...
between
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
and
Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...
, where it cuts a steep-sided valley, known as the Mole Gap, through the chalk. Much of the catchment area lies on impermeable rock (including
Weald Clay Weald Clay or the Weald Clay Formation is a Lower Cretaceous sedimentary rock unit underlying areas of South East England, between the North and South Downs, in an area called the Weald Basin. It is the uppermost unit of the Wealden Group of ...
and
London Clay The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...
), meaning that the river level responds rapidly to heavy rainfall. During the second half of the 20th century,
pollution Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause harm. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the component ...
levels in the river were high; however, since 1995 the
water quality Water quality refers to the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of water based on the standards of its usage. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance, generally achieved through tr ...
has improved dramatically and the Mole now boasts the greatest diversity of fish species of any river in England. Twelve Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) that include wetland habitats are located within the Mole
catchment area A catchment area in human geography, is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
, and the stretch of river through Leatherhead has been designated a Local Nature Reserve. The Mole Gap forms part of a
Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...
and is an SSSI of European importance. The river has captured the imagination of several authors and poets, particularly since in very hot summers the river channel can become dry between Dorking and Leatherhead, most recently in 2022. In
John Speed John Speed (1551 or 1552 – 28 July 1629) was an English cartographer, chronologer and historian of Cheshire origins.; superseding . The son of a citizen and Merchant Taylor in London,"Life of John Speed", ''The Hibernian Magazine, Or, Compe ...
's 1611 map of Surrey, this stretch of the river is denoted by a series of hills accompanied by the legend "The river runneth under". However the river's name is unlikely to have derived from this behaviour: The ''Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names'' suggests that ''Mole'' either comes from the Latin (a mill) or is a
back-formation Back-formation is the process or result of creating a neologism, new word via Morphology (linguistics), morphology, typically by removing or substituting actual or supposed affixes from a lexical item, in a way that expands the number of lexemes ...
from ''Molesey'' (Mul's island).AD Mills (1998) ''Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names'' (2nd ed.) OUP
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
lists twenty
mills Mills is the plural form of mill, but may also refer to: As a name * Mills (surname), a common family name of English or Gaelic origin * Mills (given name) *Mills, a fictional British secret agent in a trilogy by writer Manning O'Brine Places U ...
on the river in 1086, of which Sidlow Mill was the oldest, dating from Saxon times.


Catchment area

The drainage area of the Mole is and forms 5% of the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
's catchment area above
Teddington Teddington is an affluent suburb of London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Historically an Civil parish#ancient parishes, ancient parish in the county of Middlesex and situated close to the border with Surrey, the district became ...
. The catchment area receives of rain each year; the greatest average level of rainfall is around
Crawley Crawley () is a town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a populat ...
. The Mole catchment reaches a maximum elevation of above
Ordnance Datum An ordnance datum (OD) is a vertical datum used by an ordnance survey as the basis for deriving altitudes on maps. A spot height may be expressed as above ordnance datum (AOD). Usually mean sea level (MSL) at a particular place is used for the d ...
at
Leith Hill Leith Hill in southern England is the highest summit of the Greensand Ridge, approximately southwest of Dorking, Surrey and southwest of central London. It reaches above sea level, and is the second highest point in southeast England, aft ...
to the southwest of
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
. There is only one
aquifer An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material, consisting of permeability (Earth sciences), permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The s ...
in the drainage basin, at Fetcham, which means that the majority of the water in the river is from surface drainage, particularly from
Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport , also known as London Gatwick Airport (), is the Airports of London, secondary international airport serving London, West Sussex and Surrey. It is located near Crawley in West Sussex, south of Central London. In 2024, Gatwic ...
and the urban areas of
Horley Horley is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England, south of the towns of Reigate and Redhill. The county border with West Sussex is to the south with Crawley and Gatwick Airport close to the town. It has its own econ ...
and Crawley, and that the flow rate responds rapidly to rainfall.


Course


Upper Mole

The Mole rises in Baldhorns Copse to the south of the village of
Rusper Rusper is a village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It lies north of the town of Horsham and west of Crawley. Rusper is the centre of Rusper Parish which covers most of the northern area between Horsham and Cra ...
in
West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...
. It flows initially southwards for to a small lake at Baldhorns Park, before running eastwards through a largely rural area towards Crawley. The first tributaries to join the young river drain the northernmost part of
St Leonard's Forest St Leonard's Forest is at the western end of the Wealden Forest Ridge which runs from Horsham to Tonbridge, and is part of the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It lies on the ridge to the south of the A264 between Horsham and C ...
, between
Horsham Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
and Crawley, although much of the forest is in the catchment area of the
River Arun The River Arun () is a river in the English county of West Sussex. At long, it is the longest river entirely in Sussex and one of the longest starting in Sussex after the River Medway, River Wey and River Mole. From the series of small stre ...
. The Mole skirts the northern suburbs of Crawley where it is joined by its first major tributary, Ifield Brook, which drains Ifield Mill Pond. The first
gauging station A stream gauge, streamgage or stream gauging station is a location used by hydrologists or environmental scientists to monitor and test terrestrial bodies of water. Hydrometric measurements of water level surface elevation ("stage") and/or vo ...
on the Mole is south of Gatwick Airport ( above OD).The gauging station south of Gatwick Airport was installed in 2005, replacing an earlier station located downstream. The mean flow is and the river ran dry at this point for the first time in the summer of 1995. The Mole runs under the airport runway in a culvert completed in 1985. The course of the Mole within the airport perimeter has been altered several times since commercial flights began in 1945; however the meanders visible on the 1839
tithe map The term tithe map is usually applied to a map of an England, English or Wales, Welsh parish or township, prepared following the Tithe Commutation Act 1836. This act allowed tithes to be paid in cash rather than goods. The map and its accompanying s ...
in the stretch immediately north of the runway were reinstated in 1999, in a £1.2 million project to facilitate airport expansion. The Mole enters
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
to the south of Horley, where it meets the Gatwick Stream, a tributary draining Worth Forest to the southeast of Crawley. The second-largest Sewage Treatment Works (STW) in the Mole catchment is located on the Gatwick Stream upstream of the confluence with the Mole: Crawley STW discharges of water per day, and in prolonged dry periods it accounts for up to 75% of the flow of the Mole downstream of the confluence. The mean flow measured at Horley gauging station ( above OD) is . The Mole passes Horley to the west, flowing north towards
Sidlow Sidlow is a mainly rural, lightly populated village in the parish of Salfords and Sidlow, in the south of the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England. Geography and sublocalities Sidlow is the west of the civil parish; a high propor ...
and entering a largely rural area. south of Sidlow the mean flow is measured as at Kinnersley Manor gauging station ( above OD). The Earlswood Brook, a tributary draining the urban area of
Reigate Reigate ( ) is a town status in the United Kingdom, town in Surrey, England, around south of central London. The settlement is recorded in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Cherchefelle'', and first appears with its modern name in the 1190s. The ea ...
and Redhill, joins the Mole at Sidlow. The largest STW in the Mole catchment (Reigate STW) discharges up to per day into the Earlswood Brook.A principal tributary of the Earlswood Brook is the Redhill Brook, which includes The Moors wetland nature reserve within its catchment area. From Sidlow, the Mole turns northwest towards Brockham. A number of minor tributaries join the river from the west and are typically second order streams draining the woodland and arable land between Horsham and Dorking. The 18th-century weir at
Betchworth Betchworth is a village and civil parish in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England. The village centre is on the north bank of the River Mole and south of the A25 road, almost east of Dorking and west of Reigate. London is north of the ...
was modified in 2004 to facilitate the installation of two 27.5 kW low-head hydro turbines. About 90% of the energy generated is fed into the regional
electricity grid An electrical grid (or electricity network) is an interconnected network for electricity delivery from producers to consumers. Electrical grids consist of power stations, electrical substations to step voltage up or down, electric power trans ...
, while the remainder is used to supply the Betchworth Park Estate, where the weir is situated. The river leaves the
Weald Clay Weald Clay or the Weald Clay Formation is a Lower Cretaceous sedimentary rock unit underlying areas of South East England, between the North and South Downs, in an area called the Weald Basin. It is the uppermost unit of the Wealden Group of ...
at Brockham, passing Betchworth Castle and flowing briefly across
greensand Greensand or green sand is a sand or sandstone which has a greenish color. This term is specifically applied to shallow marine sediment that contains noticeable quantities of rounded greenish grains. These grains are called ''glauconies'' and co ...
and
Gault Clay The Gault Formation is a geological formation of stiff blue clay deposited in a calm, fairly deep-water marine environment during the Lower Cretaceous Period (Upper and Middle Albian). It is well exposed in the coastal cliffs at Copt Point in Fo ...
to Pixham, northeast of
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
. A mean flow of is measured at a fourth gauging station, located at Castle Mill ( above OD). At Pixham the Mole meets the
Pipp Brook The Pipp Brook is a left-bank tributary of the River Mole, Surrey, England. It rises at two main springs north of Leith Hill on the Greensand Ridge, then descends steeply in a northward direction, before flowing eastwards along the Vale of Holme ...
, a tributary draining the northeastern slopes of Leith Hill.The Pipp Brook drains the northernmost heavily wooded slopes of Leith Hill (which include Squire's Great Wood and Abinger Forest), as well as areas of Wotton, Westcott and Dorking.


Mole Gap

Between Dorking and
Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...
the Mole cuts a steep-sided valley (the Mole Gap) though the
North Downs The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Areas of Outstanding Natural Be ...
, carving a river cliff on the western flank of Box Hill and a smaller cliff at Ham Bank in Norbury Park. The sudden change from impermeable
Weald Clay Weald Clay or the Weald Clay Formation is a Lower Cretaceous sedimentary rock unit underlying areas of South East England, between the North and South Downs, in an area called the Weald Basin. It is the uppermost unit of the Wealden Group of ...
to
permeable Permeability, permeable, and semipermeable may refer to: Chemistry *Drug permeability *Semipermeable membrane, a membrane which will allow certain molecules or ions to pass through it by diffusion *Vascular permeability, the movement of fluids a ...
chalk Chalk is a soft, white, porous, sedimentary carbonate rock. It is a form of limestone composed of the mineral calcite and originally formed deep under the sea by the compression of microscopic plankton that had settled to the sea floor. Ch ...
and the increased gradientThe Mole descends in the stretch between Brockham and Leatherhead, compared to in between Horley and Brockham. of the river, allow the water table to drop below the bed of the river. Water is therefore able to flow out of the river through swallow holes in the bed and banks, decreasing the volume of water carried in the main channel. The course of the river through Norbury Park was partially straightened when the Epsom to Horsham railway was built in 1837, with the removal of a small meander north of
Westhumble Westhumble is a village in South East England, south east England, approximately north of Dorking, Surrey. The village is not part of a civil parishes in England, civil parish, however the majority of the settlement is in the Parish (Church ...
. The meander was reinstated in 1997, in an attempt to enhance this area of the Park, although it has since become blocked by
silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension (chemistry), suspension with water. Silt usually ...
. The entirety of the Mole Gap lies within the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.


Lower Mole

At Leatherhead, the Mole leaves the chalk and turns northwestwards to flow across impermeable
London Clay The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...
, winding towards Cobham. The water table rises at this point and much of the water which drained out of the channel through the chalk returns through springs in the riverbed. The aquifer at Fetcham is the only one in the entire catchment area. The next major tributary,
The Rye "The Rye" is the 121st episode of the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld''. It was the 11th episode of the seventh season, originally airing on January 4, 1996. It was the final episode of the series to be written by American comedian Carol Leifer. In thi ...
, (which drains
Ashtead Ashtead is a village in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, approximately south of central London. Ashtead is on the single-carriageway A24 road (Great Britain), A24 between Epsom and Leatherhead. The village is on the northern sl ...
) joins to the north of Leatherhead, before the river is crossed by the
M25 motorway The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major ring road encircling most of Greater London. The motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 th ...
. At Cobham the river swings round in a pronounced axehead
meander A meander is one of a series of regular sinuous curves in the Channel (geography), channel of a river or other watercourse. It is produced as a watercourse erosion, erodes the sediments of an outer, concave bank (cut bank, cut bank or river cl ...
skirting Painshill Landscape Garden, where a diameter
waterwheel A water wheel is a machine for converting the kinetic energy of flowing or falling water into useful forms of power, often in a watermill. A water wheel consists of a large wheel (usually constructed from wood or metal), with numerous blade ...
raises water from the river to feed the ornamental lake in the park.The undershot wheel at Painshill Park was restored in 1987 and is located at the end of an artificial
leat A leat (; also lete or leet, or millstream) is the name, common in the south and west of England and in Wales, for an artificial watercourse or aqueduct dug into the ground, especially one supplying water to a watermill or its mill pond. Othe ...
, rather than on the main river channel.
From Painshill Park the river flows northeastwards to the Thames, passing to the west of Esher Commons and then forming the boundary between
Hersham Hersham is a suburban village in Surrey, within the M25 and the Greater London Built-up Area. It has a mixture of low and high rise housing and has four technology/trading estates. Hersham is contiguous with Walton-on-Thames, its post town, t ...
and
Esher Esher ( ) is a town in the borough of Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole, Surrey, River Mole. Esher is an outlying suburb of London, close to the London–Surrey border; with Esher Commons at its ...
, where the mean flow of the river is . In response to heavy flooding of East Molesey and Thames Ditton in September 1968, the river was modified downstream of Albany Bridge to the Thames and new flood defences were constructed. Finally the Mole splits into two branches at the Island Barn Reservoir near
Molesey Molesey is a suburban district comprising two large villages, East Molesey and West Molesey, in the Borough of Elmbridge, Surrey, England. Molesey is within the Greater London Built-up Area, and is situated on the south bank of the River Thames ...
: the northern (and smaller) branch continues as the River Mole and the southern branch is known as the River Ember.WE Foster WB Harris (1988) Flood Alleviation Scheme for the Lower River Mole ''Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers'' 84 235-263 The two rivers flow either side of the reservoir, before running side by side in a northeasterly direction, merging before the
confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...
with the River Thames, on the reach above
Teddington Lock Teddington Lock is a complex of three locks and a weir on the River Thames between Ham and Teddington in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. Historically in Middlesex, it was first built in 1810. The limit of legal powe ...
. (For the purposes of the remainder of this article, the River Mole and the River Ember are treated as a single entity.) Prior to the last ice age, the River Thames followed a more northerly route to the
North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
, from
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...
via Marlow,
Chorleywood Chorleywood is a village and civil parish in the Three Rivers District, Hertfordshire, on the border with Buckinghamshire, approximately northwest of Charing Cross. The village is adjacent to the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Be ...
,
St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
,
Hertford Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census. The town grew around a Ford (crossing), ford on ...
and along the present
Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...
Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
border. During this period, the Mole is thought to have merged with the
River Wey The River Wey is a main tributary of the River Thames in south east England. Its two branches, one of which rises near Alton, Hampshire, Alton in Hampshire and the other in West Sussex to the south of Haslemere, join at Tilford in Surrey. Onc ...
near
Byfleet Byfleet is a village in Surrey, England. It is located in the far east of the borough of Woking, around east of West Byfleet, from which it is separated by the M25 motorway and the Wey Navigation. The village is of medieval origin. Its win ...
and then flowed in a north-easterly direction via
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
to meet the proto-Thames near
Ware WARE (1250 AM) is a commercial radio station broadcasting a classic hits format. Licensed to Ware, Massachusetts, United States, the station serves the Springfield radio market. The station is currently owned by Success Signal Broadcasting ...
in
Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...
. Today the Mole and Wey are less than apart at their closest point near Painshill Park. During the
Middle Pleistocene The Chibanian, more widely known as the Middle Pleistocene (its previous informal name), is an Age (geology), age in the international geologic timescale or a Stage (stratigraphy), stage in chronostratigraphy, being a division of the Pleistocen ...
period,The Middle Pleistocene period was
years ago A year is a unit of time based on how long it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun. In scientific use, the tropical year (approximately 365 solar days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45 seconds) and the sidereal year (about 20 minutes longer) are more exa ...
a large ice sheet built up across much of the East of England, reaching as far south as
St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...
and
Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...
, blocking the path of the proto-Thames. Glacial meltwater from the Anglian ice sheet caused the Thames to divert southwards and flood the valley of the Mole–Wey river, thus adopting its present route through
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
.


Ecology


Water quality

Standard water quality of Mole and its tributaries has improved markedly since the 1990s. In 1990 the
Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...
assessed 23% of the watercourses as Grade B (good) or better. In 2002 this figure was 60%. Investment in the Sewage Treatment Works in the catchment area has improved the quality of the discharges into the river, and modifications to the runway and apron drainage systems at
Gatwick Airport Gatwick Airport , also known as London Gatwick Airport (), is the Airports of London, secondary international airport serving London, West Sussex and Surrey. It is located near Crawley in West Sussex, south of Central London. In 2024, Gatwic ...
mean that surface water is diverted to aerated pollution control lagoons and balancing ponds for treatments, including acid/alkali neutralisation, before release into the river. In 1972 a sub-debate on the future cleanliness of the Mole was had by the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
, involving a member of the South-East Strategic Committee of the
Thames Conservancy The Thames Conservancy (formally the Conservators of the River Thames) was a body responsible for the management of River Thames, that river in England. It was founded in 1857 to replace the jurisdiction of the City of London up to Staines-upon-T ...
(succeeded by the
Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...
) and four others. In this it was said, "...I can see no future for he Mole The Mole Valley has been polluted. The Mole where I used to tickle
trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...
in my youth is a drain, and it will remain a drain." Rebuttals included that the Mole is a "charming Surrey steam" and "If Lord Lytton went to fish in the River Mole – and there are still angling clubs there – he would find that he would still be able to catch a
trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...
". Highly polluting discharges have become less common but have taken place since 2000. In 2003, Gatwick Airport Ltd pleaded guilty to charges of allowing chemical pollution to enter the River Mole after a detergent, used to clean rubber and oil from the runway, was washed into Crawters Brook by airport workers. The
Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...
estimated that up to 5200 fish of 14 different species were killed as the pollution drained downstream. The airport was fined £30,000 by
Lewes Lewes () is the county town of East Sussex, England. The town is the administrative centre of the wider Lewes (district), district of the same name. It lies on the River Ouse, Sussex, River Ouse at the point where the river cuts through the Sou ...
Crown Court The Crown Court is the criminal trial court, court of first instance in England and Wales responsible for hearing all indictable offences, some Hybrid offence, either way offences and appeals of the decisions of magistrates' courts. It is ...
. In May 2003, sewage leaking from a pump operated by Thames Water leaked into the Stanford Brook, killing coarse fish in the Gatwick stream. Water quality of the River Mole in 2019:


Biodiversity

The
marsh frog The marsh frog (''Pelophylax ridibundus'') is a species of water frog native to Europe and parts of western Asia. Description The marsh frog is the largest type of frog in most of its range, with males growing to a size around 100 mm (3.9 ...
(''Pelophylax ridibundus'', a non-native species introduced from Europe in the 1930s) is now commonly found in the upper Mole and its tributaries around Newdigate and Gatwick. There is no evidence that the presence of the frogs has had a deleterious effect on
indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology) In biogeography, a native species is indigenous to a given region or ecosystem if its presence in that region is the result of only local natural evolution (though often populari ...
amphibians. A second non-native species, the
edible frog The edible frog (''Pelophylax'' kl. ''esculentus'') is a hybrid species of common European frog, also known as the common water frog or green frog (however, this latter term is also used for the North American species ''Rana clamitans''). It ...
(''Pelophylax'' kl. ''esculentus'') was introduced to a site at Newdigate in the early 1900s. It has in 2008 been recorded in tributaries of the River Mole at Capel and Brockham. The River Mole has the most diverse fish population of any river in England. The Gatwick Stream is dominated by coarse fish such as
brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a species of salmonid ray-finned fish and the most widely distributed species of the genus ''Salmo'', endemic to most of Europe, West Asia and parts of North Africa, and has been widely introduced globally ...
,
brook lamprey The brook lamprey (''Lampetra planeri''), also known as the European brook lamprey and the western brook lamprey is a small European lamprey species that exclusively inhabits freshwater environments. The species is related to, but distinct from, ...
, and
eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 20 families, 164 genera, and about 1000 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...
. In 2003, the upper River Mole near Meath Green Lane, Horley, was enhanced to create a gravel
spawning Spawn is the Egg cell, eggs and Spermatozoa, sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of freely releasing eggs and sperm into a body of water (fresh or marine); the physical act is ...
area to encourage
chub Chub is a common fish name. It pertains to any one of a number of ray-finned fish in several families and general. In the UK, the term ''chub'' usually refers to the species '' Squalius cephalus''. In addition, see sea chub. In family Cyprinid ...
and
dace A dace is a small fish that can be one of many different species. The unmodified name is usually a reference to the common dace (''Leuciscus leuciscus''). This, like most fish called "daces", belongs to the family Leuciscidae, mostly in subfami ...
in addition to roach. In 1974
zander The zander (''Sander lucioperca''), sander or pikeperch, is a species of ray-finned fish from the Family (biology), family Percidae, which also includes perch, Gymnocephalus, ruffe and Darter (fish), darter. It is found in freshwater and brackis ...
, a non-indigenous coarse fish native to Europe, were introduced legally to Old Bury Hill Lake which supplies the Pipp Brook. Zander have been caught in the Lower Mole below Dorking since the 1980s. In the Mole Gap between Dorking and Leatherhead the river supports populations of chub, dace,
barbel Barbel may refer to: *Barbel (anatomy), a whisker-like organ near the mouth found in some fish (notably catfish, loaches and cyprinids) and turtles *Barbel (fish), a common name for certain species of fish **''Barbus barbus'', a species of cyprini ...
, and brown trout. Both barbel and brown trout are extremely sensitive to water quality and pollution. Below Leatherhead the river has historically supported larger predatory fish including chub,
perch Perch is a common name for freshwater fish from the genus ''Perca'', which belongs to the family Percidae of the large order Perciformes. The name comes from , meaning the type species of this genus, the European perch (''P. fluviatilis'') ...
, pike, and eels, however in recent years chub and eel numbers have begun to decline. North of Esher the old river channel is dominated by floating pennywort, a highly invasive weed, which cuts off all light to the river bed, reducing oxygen levels and resulting in a poor habitat for fish. The Ember flood relief channel has a diverse fish population, including chub, dace, roach, bleak, large pike and barbel. At the
confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...
of the Mole and the River Thames at Hampton Court Palace it is possible to catch a wide variety of coarse fish species. The geographical distribution of many species of
invertebrate Invertebrates are animals that neither develop nor retain a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''spine'' or ''backbone''), which evolved from the notochord. It is a paraphyletic grouping including all animals excluding the chordata, chordate s ...
in the river reflects the geology of the catchment area. Viviparid
snails A snail is a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gas ...
and water scorpions (of the genus ''Nepidae'') are commonly found where the river runs over the
London Clay The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...
. Crayfish are common in areas associated with high
alkalinity Alkalinity (from ) is the capacity of water to resist Freshwater acidification, acidification. It should not be confused with base (chemistry), basicity, which is an absolute measurement on the pH scale. Alkalinity is the strength of a buffer s ...
, particularly around Brockham, and the tributaries which run over the
Weald Clay Weald Clay or the Weald Clay Formation is a Lower Cretaceous sedimentary rock unit underlying areas of South East England, between the North and South Downs, in an area called the Weald Basin. It is the uppermost unit of the Wealden Group of ...
provide an excellent habitat for
stoneflies Plecoptera is an order of insects commonly known as stoneflies. Some 3,500 species are described worldwide, with new species still being discovered. Stoneflies are found worldwide, except Antarctica. Stoneflies are believed to be one of the most ...
,
caddisflies The caddisflies (order Trichoptera) are a group of insects with aquatic larvae and terrestrial adults. There are approximately 14,500 described species, most of which can be divided into the suborders Integripalpia and Annulipalpia on the basis ...
, fast swimming
mayflies Mayflies (also known as shadflies or fishflies in Canada and the upper Midwestern United States, as Canadian soldiers in the American Great Lakes region, and as up-winged flies in the United Kingdom) are aquatic insects belonging to the order ...
and riffle beetles. The beautiful demoiselle (''Calopteryx virgo'') disappeared from the River Mole during the 1960s owing to deteriorating water quality, but has since recolonised. The white-legged damselfly (''Platycnemis pennipes'') is also found along the river, and the downy emerald (''Cordulia aenea'') is found between Box Hill and Leatherhead. The Mole is one of only three locations in England where the river shingle beetle (''Meotica anglica'') is found. A nationally scarce species which is locally common on the River Mole is the greater dodder (''Cuscuta europaea''), a
parasitic plant A parasitic plant is a plant that derives some or all of its nutritional requirements from another living plant. They make up about 1% of angiosperms and are found in almost every biome. All Parasite, parasitic plants develop a specialized organ ...
.


Conservation

The Mole
catchment area A catchment area in human geography, is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
includes twelve Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) that include wetland habitats, The Mole Gap forms part of a
Special Area of Conservation A special area of conservation (SAC) is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC), also known as the ''Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora''. They are to protect the 220 habitats and ap ...
and is an SSSI of European importance. The stretch of river between Thorncroft Manor ( south of
Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...
) and River Lane in Fetcham has been designated a Local Nature Reserve. Although much of the surrounding land has been taken by residential and commercial development, this section of the Mole supports 20 different
mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three ...
species, 20
butterfly Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...
species and 15 species of
dragonfly A dragonfly is a flying insect belonging to the infraorder Anisoptera below the order Odonata. About 3,000 extant species of dragonflies are known. Most are tropical, with fewer species in temperate regions. Loss of wetland habitat threat ...
. The geology of the local area is complex, since the river leaves the chalk of the Mole Gap at this point and flows over gravel and clay, creating a patchwork of different habitats including scrub,
woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with woody plants (trees and shrubs), or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunli ...
,
hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced (3 feet or closer) shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate ...
s, banks, and
meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable con ...
s as well as the water itself. The river also provides a corridor for wildlife through the centre of Leatherhead. The West End Common forms part of the Esher Commons, owned and managed by Elmbridge Borough Council. The River Mole forms the western boundary of the common, flowing past a steep sandy area known locally as ''The Ledges''. Plant species typical of ancient woodland are found in this area, including bluebells (''Hyacinthoides non-scriptus''),
marsh marigold ''Caltha palustris'', known as marsh-marigold and kingcup, is a small to medium sized perennial herbaceous plant of the buttercup family, native to marshes, fens, ditches and wet woodland in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It flowe ...
s (''Caltha palustris'') and golden saxifrages (''Chrysosplenium'' sp.). large bittercress (''Cardamine amara'') and the non-native
Himalayan balsam ''Impatiens glandulifera'', Himalayan balsam, is a large annual plant native to the Himalayas. Via human introduction it is now present across much of the Northern Hemisphere and is considered an invasive species in many areas. Uprooting or cutt ...
(''Impatiens glandulifera''). Molesey Heath Local Nature Reserve lies on the west bank of the Mole, west of the Island Barn Reservoir. The Heath is an area of rough scrubland and, despite its name, is a reclaimed landfill site hence its large but artificial mound and small plateau. The site is a rich habitat for birds including the redshank and
little ringed plover The little ringed plover (''Charadrius dubius'') is a small plover. The genus name ''Charadrius'' is a Late Latin word for a yellowish bird mentioned in the fourth-century Vulgate. It derives from Ancient Greek ''kharadrios'' a bird found in river ...
.


Geology


Upper Mole (geology)

The Mole rises south of Rusper in West Sussex, where an outcrop of the Hastings Beds sandstone dips below the impermeable
Weald Clay Weald Clay or the Weald Clay Formation is a Lower Cretaceous sedimentary rock unit underlying areas of South East England, between the North and South Downs, in an area called the Weald Basin. It is the uppermost unit of the Wealden Group of ...
. From the source to
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
, the river drains an area of , of which approximately 60% is on Wealden or Atherfield Clay, 20% is on Tunbridge Wells Sand and 20% is on
greensand Greensand or green sand is a sand or sandstone which has a greenish color. This term is specifically applied to shallow marine sediment that contains noticeable quantities of rounded greenish grains. These grains are called ''glauconies'' and co ...
.
Brickearth Brickearth is a term originally used to describe Superficial deposits, superficial windblown deposits found in southern England. The term has been employed in English-speaking regions to describe similar deposits. Brickearths are periglacial ...
deposits are common in the valley around Betchworth and east of Dorking. The upper Mole catchment is dominated by a single broad terrace, which runs continuously from Tilgate Forest to the entry to the Mole Gap. Above Meath Green (near
Horley Horley is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England, south of the towns of Reigate and Redhill. The county border with West Sussex is to the south with Crawley and Gatwick Airport close to the town. It has its own econ ...
), the terrace corresponds to the
flood plain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...
of the river, however from this point downstream to Brockham, the river cuts a narrow trench no more than wide. A similar trench is runs up several of the Mole's tributaries, notably along Deanoak Brook which follows a local
strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) * Hobart Huson, author of several drug related books Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm * Airstrike, ...
. The presence of the trench protects the land from flooding, rendering it suitable for
agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
.


Mole Gap (geology)

Between Dorking and Leatherhead the Mole cuts a steep-sided valley through the North Downs, creating a river cliff on the western flank of Box Hill. The bedrock is permeable chalk and the
water table The water table is the upper surface of the phreatic zone or zone of saturation. The zone of saturation is where the pores and fractures of the ground are saturated with groundwater, which may be fresh, saline, or brackish, depending on the loc ...
lies permanently below the level of the riverbed, allowing water to drain out of the river through swallow holes in the bed and banks. The amount of water lost from the river is significant and in very hot summers the channel can become dry between Mickleham and Thorncroft Manor; this was recorded most recently in 1949, 1976 and 2022. At
Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...
, the river leaves the chalk and flows across impermeable
London Clay The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...
. At this point, the water table rises enough for the water to flow back into the main river channel. In a survey in 1958, the geologist C. C. Fagg identified 25 active swallow holes between Dorking and Mickleham; the majority were only a few centimetres in diameter and were located in the vertical banks of the river below the water line. Most holes were difficult to observe in times of normal or heavy flow and were susceptible to silting up as new holes were continually being formed. A few much larger swallow holes were also observed separated from the main river by a channel of about a metre.Shepperd R (1982) ''The Manor of Wistomble in the Parish of Mickleham: A local history'' chapter 9 page 85 About six of these larger swallow holes were found to the west of the Burford Bridge Hotel, along the course of the A24 Mickleham Bypass during its construction in 1936. Initially the surveyors tried to fill the holes with rubble to prevent the foundations of the new road subsiding. However this proved to be impractical and they were instead covered by concrete domes, up to 18 m in diameter, each fully supported by the surrounding chalk and provided with a manhole and access shaft to allow periodic inspection. In the late 1960s the domes were reopened and inspected and the alluvium in the largest swallow hole was observed to have subsided by under the centre of one of the domes. When the Dorking to Leatherhead railway was constructed in 1859, a fossilised swallow hole was discovered in the cutting at the south end of
Box Hill & Westhumble railway station Box Hill & Westhumble is a railway station in the village of Westhumble in Surrey, England, approximately north of Dorking town centre. Box Hill, Surrey, Box Hill is located approximately to the east. It is down the line from . Train service ...
, suggesting that even in its early history, the river had swallow holes. The author
Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; 1660 – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, merchant and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translati ...
, who attended school in
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
and probably grew up in the village of
Westhumble Westhumble is a village in South East England, south east England, approximately north of Dorking, Surrey. The village is not part of a civil parishes in England, civil parish, however the majority of the settlement is in the Parish (Church ...
, described the swallow holes in the River Mole in his book '' A tour thro' the Whole Island of Great Britain'' (first published in 1724): Not all of the water removed from the river by the swallow holes is returned to the channel at
Leatherhead Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon ...
. The chalk aquifer also feeds the springs at the southern end of Fetcham Mill Pond, which have never been known to run dry. A survey in March 1883 estimated that the Fetcham springs were producing about every day. A second survey in 1948 estimated that the same springs were yielding about a day. The
water table The water table is the upper surface of the phreatic zone or zone of saturation. The zone of saturation is where the pores and fractures of the ground are saturated with groundwater, which may be fresh, saline, or brackish, depending on the loc ...
in the chalk of the Wey Gap is significantly higher than might be expected from natural rainwater percolation alone. It has been suggested that a proportion of the excess water originates from the Mole Gap.


Lower Mole (geology)

At Leatherhead the river leaves the chalk bedrock, moving onto
London Clay The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...
. The river meanders across an
alluvial plain An alluvial plain is a plain (an essentially flat landform) created by the deposition of sediment over a long period by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms. A ''floodplain'' is part of the process, bei ...
between wide towards Cobham, where it begins to descend to a lower flood plain, which broadens as the river turns in an axehead meander. At the east end of Painshill Park, the flood plain narrows into a trench about wide, in which the river runs northwards for towards Hersham, where the river enters the flood plain of the River Thames. Between Cobham and Esher, the Mole's historic courses have deposited gravel on top of the London Clay. The depth of the deposits generally varies from ; the lower layers are generally highly compacted and cemented together with brick-red iron oxide, whereas the upper layers are loosely packed with angular flints and sand. Remains of a further gravel terrace, containing cherts and flints to a depth of , line the east side of
St George's Hill St George's Hill is a private gated community in Weybridge, Surrey, England. Comprising more than 450 properties, the land that is now the contemporary St George's Hill estate was purchased by builder W. G. Tarrant in 1911. Over the followin ...
.


History


Etymology

The river is first recorded in the ''Red Book of Thorney'' in AD 983 as ''Emen'' and in the AD 1005 ''Cartulary of the Abbey of Eynsham'' as both ''Emen'' and ''Æmen''. Variations in the name are recorded throughout the Middle Ages and the river appears as ''Amele'' in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
of 1086, and subsequently as ''Emele'' in 12th- and 13th-century Court Rolls. This name is probably derived from the
Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
word ''æmen'' meaning ''misty'' or ''causing mists'', and the name of the River Ember probably has its origins in this name.The prefix of the former
hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numerals, Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 (number), 99 and preceding 101 (number), 101. In mathematics 100 is the square of 10 (number), 10 (in scientific notation it is written as 102). The standar ...
and present
borough of Elmbridge Elmbridge is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Esher, and other notable towns and villages include Cobham, Walton-on-Thames, Weybridge and Molesey. The borough lies just outside the a ...
, which is referred to as Emley Bridge in some 19th-century records, probably also has its origins in the
Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
word ''æmen''.
The name ''Mole'' does not appear until the 16th century, first occurring as ''Moule'' in Harrison's ''Description of Britain'' of 1577. The antiquarian
William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland that relates la ...
uses the Latinized form ''Molis'' in the 1586 edition of ''Britannia'' and
Michael Drayton Michael Drayton ( – ) was an English poet who came to prominence in the Elizabethan era, continuing to write through the reign of James I and into the reign of Charles I. Many of his works consisted of historical poetry. He was also the fir ...
is the first to use ''Mole'' in his poem ''Poly-Olbion'' published in 1613. In
John Speed John Speed (1551 or 1552 – 28 July 1629) was an English cartographer, chronologer and historian of Cheshire origins.; superseding . The son of a citizen and Merchant Taylor in London,"Life of John Speed", ''The Hibernian Magazine, Or, Compe ...
's 1611 map of Surrey this stretch of the river is denoted by a series of hills accompanied by the legend "The river runneth under". However the river's name is unlikely to have derived from this behaviour: The ''Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names'' suggests that ''Mole'' either comes from the Latin ''mola'' (a mill) or is a
back-formation Back-formation is the process or result of creating a neologism, new word via Morphology (linguistics), morphology, typically by removing or substituting actual or supposed affixes from a lexical item, in a way that expands the number of lexemes ...
from ''Molesey'' (Mul's island). In
John Rocque John Rocque (originally Jean; –1762) was a French-born British surveyor and cartographer, best known for his detailed John Rocque's Map of London, 1746, map of London published in 1746. Life and career Rocque was born in France in about 1704 ...
's 1768 map of Surrey, the name ''Moulsey River'' is used.


Archaeology

In common with much of the rest of the Weald, the earliest evidence of human settlement along the Upper Mole is from the
Mesolithic Period The Mesolithic ( Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic is often used synonym ...
(20,000–7000 BC). Mesolithic sites at Wonham, Flanchford and Sidlow. Finds at Wonham include arrowheads and a plano-convex knife. The Lower Mole appears to have been settled during the same period and a flint axe dating from Mesolithic period found on spit of land close to River Mole in Cobham in 1965. Remains of a flat-bottomed dug-out canoe were found at the confluence of the Mole and Thames in 1877 by a local boatman. The canoe is preserved at the
Pitt Rivers Museum Pitt Rivers Museum is a museum displaying the archaeological and anthropological collections of the University of Oxford in England. The museum is located to the east of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, and can only be accessed ...
in
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
. The Mole Gap and North Downs do not appear to have been settled until the late Stone Age: A large axe, typical of a "rough-out" axe produced during the
Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...
period, which was discovered in 1952 during building work in Westhumble, A flint mine of the same period has been discovered at East Horsley along with Neolithic flakes of flint at Fetcham and Headley Heath. Significant
Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
finds include a bronze sword found close to the river north of Amberley Farm near Charlwood and a small hoard of weaponry consisting of two palstave axes and a scabbard chape was discovered in 2003 in Norbury Park close to Ham Bank.


Navigation

It is not clear to what extent the Mole was used for navigation in the past: In the late 13th century, Thorncroft Manor (south of Leatherhead) purchased a ''shout'', a type of boat up to in length used to carry produce to market and it has been suggested that stone cut from quarries in Reigate was transported to London via the river. During the 17th century, two bills came before parliament to make sections of the river
navigable A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Navigability is also referred to in the broader context of a body of water having sufficient under ...
. The first, in 1663, was passed by the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
but was defeated in the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
. During the following year (1664), an act was passed by both
Houses of Parliament The Palace of Westminster is the meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is located in London, England. It is commonly called the Houses of Parliament after the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two legislative ch ...
to make the River Mole navigable from Reigate to the River Thames, but was never executed. The only
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
river to have been made fully navigable is the combined lower section of the
River Wey The River Wey is a main tributary of the River Thames in south east England. Its two branches, one of which rises near Alton, Hampshire, Alton in Hampshire and the other in West Sussex to the south of Haslemere, join at Tilford in Surrey. Onc ...
. In 1798 William Marshall advocated the canalisation of a short stretch of the River Mole between
Betchworth Betchworth is a village and civil parish in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England. The village centre is on the north bank of the River Mole and south of the A25 road, almost east of Dorking and west of Reigate. London is north of the ...
and
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
to facilitate the movement of chalk from quarry to market. In 1810 the engineer John Rennie proposed a canal linking the
River Medway The River Medway is a river in South East England. It rises in the High Weald AONB, High Weald, West Sussex and flows through Tonbridge, Maidstone and the Medway conurbation in Kent, before emptying into the Thames Estuary near Sheerness, a to ...
to
Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...
which was to have a branch to London following the Mole for much of its length. Between 1825 and 1828 the architect and civil engineer Nicholas Wilcox Cundy proposed a Grand Imperial Ship Canal from
Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and London Borough of Lewisham. It is named after a Ford (crossing), ford of the River Ravensbourne. From the mid 16th century ...
to
Chichester Chichester ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in the Chichester District, Chichester district of West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher ...
passing through the Mole Gap, however he was unable to attract sufficient financial interest in his scheme. Today the Mole is navigable for the from the confluence with the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
to Molember Weir at
East Molesey East is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fact that ea ...
where there is a private mooring facility. The river may be paddled all year by
canoe A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term ' ...
between Brockham and Fetcham with an appropriate licence from the
British Canoe Union British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and cultur ...
.


Second World War defences

During the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
several sites along the course of the Mole were fortified for the defence of London against invasion from the south. GHQ Line B ran along the North Downs from Farnham and Guildford, crossing the Mole Gap to the north of Dorking and following the river to Horley. Between Betchworth and Box Hill, the north bank of the River Mole was stabilised and made steeper to prevent wheeled vehicles from crossing. At Boxhill Farm, where access to the river from the north bank was required for the herd of dairy cows, a row of twelve concrete cylinders were cast as an anti-tank measure. Gun mounts were also installed to protect both Boxhill and Deepdene bridges and several pillboxes were installed. An anti-tank ditch was dug from the Stepping Stones eastwards across the fields belonging to Bradley Farm (now Denbies vineyard). The river crossing at Sidlow Bridge was heavily defended and a line of pill boxes was constructed on the north bank of the river. Concrete anti-tank dragon's teeth were built on both sides of the river, a short distance upstream of the bridge, as an obstacle to
armoured vehicles Military vehicles are commonly armoured (or armored; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) to withstand the impact of Fragmentation (weaponry), shrapnel, bullets, Shell (projectile), shells, Rocke ...
.


Crossings of the Mole


Mole Gap

The
North Downs Way The North Downs Way National Trail is a long-distance path in South East England, opened in 1978. It runs from Farnham in Surrey to Dover in Kent, past Guildford, Dorking, Merstham, Otford and Rochester, through the Surrey Hills National Lan ...
crosses the river at Box Hill via seventeen hexagonal stepping stones, which are frequently submerged after heavy rainfall. The current stones were dedicated in September 1946 by the then Prime Minister
Clement Attlee Clement Richard Attlee, 1st Earl Attlee (3 January 18838 October 1967) was a British statesman who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955. At ...
, replacing those destroyed during the Second World War as an anti-invasion measure. The location is popular with anglers and families, but swimming is strongly discouraged as the water is polluted in places. The stones give their name to the pub in the nearby village of
Westhumble Westhumble is a village in South East England, south east England, approximately north of Dorking, Surrey. The village is not part of a civil parishes in England, civil parish, however the majority of the settlement is in the Parish (Church ...
. When the Burford Bridge was rebuilt in 1937, excavations revealed a "flint-surfaced approach to ford at low level having all the signs of Roman workmanship" suggesting that Stane Street (which ran from
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to
Chichester Chichester ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in the Chichester District, Chichester district of West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher ...
via
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
) crossed the river at this point. In Defoe's time, there was a footbridge at this point, but carts and waggons had to cross the river by a ford.


Leatherhead

There are three listed bridges in Leatherhead of which the 14 arch Leatherhead Town Bridge is the oldest. The first bridge on this site was probably constructed during the late Middle Ages and was rebuilt and enlarged by the county surveyor, George Gwilt in 1782–83. The bridge is a long structure of 14 segmental arches resting on low piers, finished in red brick in
Flemish bond Flemish bond is a pattern of brickwork that is a common feature in Georgian architecture. The pattern features bricks laid lengthwise (''stretchers'') alternating with bricks laid with their shorter ends exposed (''headers'') within the same cou ...
, with some
Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone geological formation (formally named the Portland Stone Formation) dating to the Tithonian age of the Late Jurassic that is quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The quarries are cut in beds of whi ...
dressing. A few metres downstream of Leatherhead Bridge stands the Grade II listed railway viaduct which carries the Leatherhead to Dorking line over the river. The bridge was constructed in 1867 and, at the insistence of Thomas Grissell the landowner, was given lavish architectural treatment. The single-span Shell Bridge stands in the grounds of Thorncroft Manor, to the south of the Town Centre. The bridge was constructed as an ornamental feature in parkland laid out by
Capability Brown Lancelot "Capability" Brown (born c. 1715–16, baptised 30 August 1716 – 6 February 1783) was an English gardener and landscape architect, a notable figure in the history of the English landscape garden style. Unlike other architects ...
in the late 18th century. The bridge is largely composed of flint and has a large inverted scallop shell in the place of the keystone and similar shells in the
spandrels A spandrel is a roughly triangular space, usually found in pairs, between the top of an arch and a rectangular frame, between the tops of two adjacent arches, or one of the four spaces between a circle within a square. They are frequently fil ...
at each side. The bridge was renovated and strengthened in 1999 by a group of Canadian engineers working on the Terra Nove project. The restoration project was dedicated to the memory of the Canadian servicemen who were billeted in the manor during the Second World War.


Cobham

A wooden bridge is thought to have existed on the site of Cobham Bridge since the 12th century, the upkeep of which was the responsibility of the adjacent landowners. The present bridge was constructed by George Gwilt in 1792, after responsibility for maintenance had been transferred to the county council by Act of Parliament. The bridge has nine low arches and is primarily built of red brick with stone coping. The parapets were rebuilt in 1914 and the structure was given a Grade II listing in 1953.


Watermills

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
listed twenty mills on the River Mole in 1086.


Upper Mole

Horley Mill was first mentioned in a deed of the early 13th century. The most recent mill was demolished in 1959, although the mill house still stands. The first mill at
Sidlow Sidlow is a mainly rural, lightly populated village in the parish of Salfords and Sidlow, in the south of the borough of Reigate and Banstead in Surrey, England. Geography and sublocalities Sidlow is the west of the civil parish; a high propor ...
was built during Saxon times. The final mill on the site was demolished in 1790, however remains of the mill leat are still visible. Mention is made of a mill at Brockham in 1634 and remains of the mill race are still visible. Castle Mill at Pixham is a Grade II
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
. It was a corn mill, built in the early 19th century, and has been converted into a
bed and breakfast A bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. In addition, a B&B sometimes has the hosts living in the house. ''Bed and breakfast'' is also used to ...
hotel.


Lower Mole

Slyfield Mill near
Stoke d'Abernon __NOTOC__ Stoke d'Abernon () is a village and former civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Borough of Elmbridge, Elmbridge district, in Surrey, England. It is on the bank (geography), right bank of the River Mole contiguously south of ...
is first mentioned in
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
. It was used for
fulling Fulling, also known as tucking or walking ( Scots: ''waukin'', hence often spelt waulking in Scottish English), is a step in woollen clothmaking which involves the cleansing of woven cloth (particularly wool) to eliminate ( lanolin) oils, ...
woollen cloth and milling corn. Five of the mills mentioned in
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
were in the borough of Elmbridge. Downside Mill, Cobham was the mill of the manor of Downe. Until the Dissolution of the Monasteries it was owned by
Chertsey Abbey Chertsey Abbey, dedicated to St Peter, was a Benedictine monastery located at Chertsey in the English county of Surrey. It was founded in 666 AD by Saint Erkenwald who was the first abbot, and from 675 AD the Bishop of London. At the same ti ...
. It has been used for many purposes including the processing of corn, paper, iron, tinplate and flock and the generation of electricity. The present building dates from the 18th century but it is inaccessible to the public. Cobham Mill, downstream of Leatherhead, consisted of two mills used for grinding corn. In 1953 the larger mill was demolished by Surrey County Council to allieviate traffic congestion on Mill Road. The remaining red brick mill dates from the 1822 and was in use until 1928. It was restored to full working order by the Cobham Mill Preservation Trust, and is now open to the public from 2 pm to 5 pm on the second Sunday of each month (between April and October). Esher Mill also known as Royal Mill was at the end of Mill Road in Lower Green, where there is now an industrial estate. It was used to process corn, brass wire, iron, paper, linoleum, and books. For many years there may have been two mills on the site for corn grinding and industrial use. There were a series of fires over a century and after the last in 1978 the buildings were demolished. East Molesey Upper Mill was associated with the manor of Molesey Matham. It was used to produce gunpowder from the time of the Commonwealth until about 1780. The island where it stood now forms part of the ornamental gardens of a housing development called "The Wilderness". East Molesey Lower Mill, also known as Sterte Mill, was associated with the manor of Molesey Prior. During the Commonwealth it was used for gunpowder manufacture, but after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660 it reverted to corn milling. An old timber structure was replaced by a brick building in the 1820s which can be seen from the bridge over the Ember in Hampton Court Way. In addition there was Ember Mill, which stood on the banks of the old course of the River Ember near Hampton Court Way.


River Ember Flood Relief Channel and confluence with the Thames

The River Mole originally flowed into the River Thames at the point where the present Hampton Court bridge now crosses the Thames (approximately 500 m upstream of the present
confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...
, on the reach above
Teddington Lock Teddington Lock is a complex of three locks and a weir on the River Thames between Ham and Teddington in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. Historically in Middlesex, it was first built in 1810. The limit of legal powe ...
). However, during the early 1930s, when Hampton Court Way and the bridge were built, the River Mole was redirected to flow into the River Ember and both rivers now enter the Thames in a single widened and straightened channel once occupied only by the River Ember. There have been further alterations to the courses of these two rivers in a major flood prevention scheme since serious flooding in the area in
1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...
and
1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...
.


Literature

The river has captured the imagination of several authors and poets, particularly since in very hot summers the river channel can become dry between Dorking and Leatherhead (most recently during the 1976 drought). In ''
The Faerie Queene ''The Faerie Queene'' is an English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. Books IIII were first published in 1590, then republished in 1596 together with books IVVI. ''The Faerie Queene'' is notable for its form: at over 36,000 lines and over 4,000 sta ...
'' (first published in 1590)
Edmund Spenser Edmund Spenser (; – 13 January 1599 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was an English poet best known for ''The Faerie Queene'', an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the House of Tudor, Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is re ...
wrote of the river:
:And Mole, that like a nousling mole doth make :His way still under ground till Thamis he overtake.
In ''
Poly-Olbion The ''Poly-Olbion'' is a topographical poem describing England and Wales. Written by Michael Drayton (1563–1631) and published in 1612, it was reprinted with a second part in 1622. Drayton had been working on the project since at least 1598 ...
'' (first published in 1612) the poet
Michael Drayton Michael Drayton ( – ) was an English poet who came to prominence in the Elizabethan era, continuing to write through the reign of James I and into the reign of Charles I. Many of his works consisted of historical poetry. He was also the fir ...
described the journey taken by the River Thames to the sea:
:As still his goodly traine yet every houre increast, :And from the ''Surrian'' shores cleer ''Wey'' came down to meet :His Greatnes, whom the ''Tames'' so gratiously doth greet :That with the Fearne-crown'd Flood he Minion-like doth play: :Yet is not this the Brook, entiseth him to stay. :But as they thus, in pompe, came sporting on the shole, :Gainst ''Hampton-Court'' he meets the soft and gentle ''Mole''. :Whose eyes so pierc't his breast, that seeming to foreslowe :The way which he so long intended was to go, :With trifling up and down, he wandreth here and there; :And that he in her sight, transparent might appeare, :Applyes himselfe to Fords, and setteth his delight, :On that which might make him gratious in her sight. :But ''Tames'' would hardly on: oft turning back to show, :For his much loved ''Mole'' how loth he was to go. :The mother of the ''Mole'', old ''Holmsdale'', likewise beares :Th'affection of her childe, as ill as they do theirs: :But ''Mole'' respects her words, as vaine and idle dreames, :Compar'd with that high joy, to be belov'd of ''Tames:'' :And head-long holds her course, his company to win. :''Mole'' digs her selfe a path, by working day and night :(According to her name, to shew her nature right) :And underneath the Earth, for three miles space doth creep: :Till gotten out of sight, quite from her mothers keep, :Her foreintended course the wanton Nymph doth run; :As longing to imbrace old ''Tame'' and ''Isis'' son...
He writes in the appendix to Song XVII
This ''Mole'' runnes into the earth, about a mile from ''Darking'' in ''Surrey'', and after some two miles sees the light againe, which to be certaine hath been affirmed by Inhabitants thereabout reporting triall made of it.
John Milton John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, and civil servant. His 1667 epic poem ''Paradise Lost'' was written in blank verse and included 12 books, written in a time of immense religious flux and politic ...
(–1647) described the river as
:sullen Mole that runneth underneath
In a similar vein,
Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early ...
(1688–1744) wrote in his poem ''Windsor Forest'' (first published 1713)
:And sullen Mole that hides his diving flood
Robert Bloomfield (1766–1823) writes the following lines about the Mole Valley in his 1806 poem ''Wild Flowers''.
:Sweet Health, I seek thee! Hither bring :Thy balm that softens human ills; :Come on the long drawn clouds that fling :Their shadows o'er the Surry-Hills. :Yon green-topt hills, and far away :Where late as now I freedom stole, :And spent one dear delicious day :On thy wild banks romantic Mole. :Ay there's the scene! Beyond the sweep :Of London's congregated cloud, :The dark-brow'd wood, the headlong steep, :And valley paths without a crowd! :Here Thames I watch thy flowing tides, :Thy thousand sails am proud to see; :But where the Mole all silent glides :Dwells Peace - and Peace is wealth to me.R Bloomfield (1806) ''Wild Flowers; or Pastoral and Local Poetry''
Extract from ''The River Mole or Emlyn Stream'' by Mary Drinkwater Bethune, which was published in 1839.
:Who may count back that forgotten time :When first the waters forced an outlet here: :When the foundations of these stedfast hills :Were shaken, and the long imprisoned stream :Flowed through the yawning chasm? That awful day :Yet leaves its trace. The waters find their way, :Now laughing in the sun - now swallowed up :In caverns pervious to their course alone, :They leave their channel dry, and hide awhile :Their silent flow; like bitter tears, unshed :From the dim eye, before a careless world :Unheeding of our grief; but swelling still :In the full heart, which leaves unsoothed, unseen, :And broods o'er ruined hopes, and days gone by.


Tributaries

The major tributaries of the River Mole are the Ifield Brook, Gatwick Stream, Earlswood Brook,
Pipp Brook The Pipp Brook is a left-bank tributary of the River Mole, Surrey, England. It rises at two main springs north of Leith Hill on the Greensand Ridge, then descends steeply in a northward direction, before flowing eastwards along the Vale of Holme ...
and
The Rye "The Rye" is the 121st episode of the NBC sitcom ''Seinfeld''. It was the 11th episode of the seventh season, originally airing on January 4, 1996. It was the final episode of the series to be written by American comedian Carol Leifer. In thi ...
, which drains
Ashtead Ashtead is a village in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, approximately south of central London. Ashtead is on the single-carriageway A24 road (Great Britain), A24 between Epsom and Leatherhead. The village is on the northern sl ...
. A full list of the tributaries is given in the table below.


Distributary

* River Ember


See also

*
List of rivers in England This is a list of rivers of England, organised geographically and taken anti-clockwise around the English coast where the various rivers discharge into the surrounding seas, from the Solway Firth on the Scottish border to the Welsh Dee on the Wel ...
*
Tributaries of the River Thames This article lists the tributaries of the River Thames from the sea to the source, in England. There are also secondary lists of backwaters of the river itself and the waterways branching off. Note: the River Medway shares the saline lower ...


Notes


References


External links


Environment Agency: River Mole information
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mole Rivers of Surrey Rivers of West Sussex Mole Valley Local Nature Reserves in Surrey 1Mole