In 1870 McCorquodale, the well-established paper-making firm of Liverpool, founded the North Wales Paper Company Ltd in a new mill built on the site of Oakenholt Corn Mill (nprn 408226). There was a plentiful supply of water, the Chester and Holyhead Railway was adjacent and Smith & Mawdsley's Alkali Works (nprn 408493) was nearby. Production started in 1871 using straw and esparto as raw materials, but these were soon replaced by chemical wood pulp. In 1880 a second papermaking machine was installed and in 1891 the Company decided to install their own caustic soda plant as the market price was considered too high. The works continued to expand and develop in response to market demand and improving technology. In 2000, the mill was taken over by a Swedish Company, SCA, and continues in operation.
A gasometer was marked on the 1899 and visible until the 1938 OS map, indicating a private gasworks to light the mill.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 20 November 2008.
Paper-Mills and Paper-Makers in Wales 1700-1900, Alun Eirug Davies, National Library of Wales Journal, Vol XV/1, Summer 1967.