North Mill weir & gate, Midhurst.

There are 3 Rivers named Rother in England.
River Rother (Western) East Hampshire & West Sussex
plus
River Rother (Eastern) in Kent and East Sussex
River Rother, South Yorkshire, giving its name to Rotherham.
 
Featured Bridges from west to east heading downstream
Stedham - - Woolbeding - - Midhurst, North Mill
South Ambersam - - Selham - - Stopham
 

INDEX History of the Rother Raft Race Rother Angling Club Rother Raft Race

Map showing confluence of Rother and Arun rivers.

The Rother rises in Hampshire near Liss Forest (SU740311) and flows south to Petersfield before veering east into West Sussex where it flows along the foot of the South Downs to join the River Arun near Hardham. The Rother is the largest tributary of the Arun and runs for a total length of 52km, approximately 42km of which lies within West Sussex.
 
The original, old name, was the Scir or Scire, a Saxon word meaning "clear," "bright," and describes the then pebbly waters.
The large increase in fine sediment entering the river (Environment Agency 2000a, Sears 1996) has, in particular, over the last 30 years changed the river bed to a sandy silt.
 
The rivers modern name came from Rotherbridge, which was derived from the Anglo-Saxon Redrebruge, meaning cattle bridge, and was also the name of the Saxon Hundred or administrative group of parishes.

Shopham Bridge

The section of the river below Midhurst, became navigable from 1794 and closed to trade in 1888. In 1936 it was abandoned formally.
There was also a connection to Petworth via a short canal.
 
The river is partly fed by springs in the chalk slopes of the South Downs which tend to flow at a constant temperature and volume. This steady flow also powered several mills along the river and larger streams.
 
The flour mill at Coultershaw, to the south of Petworth continued working into the 1960s, still partly powered by the river. Imported bread wheat being collected from the nearby Petworth railway station, which was at that time still open to goods traffic.
 
With a catchment area of around 350km2, the river receives numerous tributaries from its source to the confluence with the river Arun. Many of those tributaries entering the river from the south, such as the Stanbridge Stream, Costers Brook and the Sutton Stream have their sources in springs emerging from the chalk of the South Downs.
 
Tributaries draining the area to the north of the river such as the River Lod, Hammer Stream and Haslingbourne Stream flow for the greater part of their lengths over Wealden clay.
 
sources:
environment agency - - Sears 1996 report - - plus others, various.