William Coles FinchMICE (23 October 1864 – 6 June 1944) was a British historian and author of a number of books on Kent-related topics. He is best known for writingWatermills and Windmills, published in 1933 and reprinted in 1976, which is considered a standard work on the topic of Kentwindmills.
Jaffa Gate Mill, Jerusalem. Picture originally published inIllustrated London News in 1858 and republished in "Watermills and Windmills" by William Coles Finch, first published in 1933.
William Coles Finch was born on 23 October[1] 1864 inRochester,Kent.[2][3][4] His wife was Emily, and they had four children, Vera, Dorothy, Irene and Neville.[5] In 1908, his first book,Water, its origin and use, was published. This was followed in 1914 byWater in Nature, jointly authored withEllison Hawks. In 1925,In Kentish Pilgrim Land was published, followed byThe Lure of the Countryside in 1927,Life in Rural England in 1928 andWatermills in Windmills in 1933.[6] The latter is considered abible on windmills in Kent.[7] Coles Finch died inLuton,Kent on 6 June 1944, aged 79.[3] He is buried in the churchyard ofSt Nicholas Church, Rochester.[8] In 1976,Watermills and Windmills was reprinted.BBC Radio Medway produced an hour-long documentarySweeping Changes, The Windmills of Kent in response to the reprint.[9]
Coles Finch was the resident engineer of the Brompton, Chatham, Gillingham and Rochester Water Company.[10] He had previously been engineer and manager of the Higham and Hundred of Hoo Water Company and assistant manager of Strood Waterworks.[11] He lived at Waterworks House, Luton,Chatham.[12] In 1897, Coles Finch read a paper at the British Association of Waterworks Engineers meeting at the Town Hall,Westminster,London on Electrical Water Level Recorders.[13]
^"In Memoriam".The Times. No. 51210. London. 23 October 1948. col A, p. 1.
^General Register Office index of births registered in October, November, December, 1864 - Name: Finch, William Coles. District: Medway Volume: 2A Page: 373.
^ab"Deaths".The Times. No. 49877. London. 8 June 1944. col A, p. 1.
^1901 Census of Medway, RG13/731, Folio 11, Page 14, Name: William C Finch, Address: 55 Queen's Road, Chatham, Occupation: Mining Engineer (Waterworks) Where Born: Rochester, Kent Condition: Married
^"Deaths".The Times. No. 51930. London. 20 February 1951. col A, p. 1.
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