The Mill
Fountains Mill nestles in the Skell Valley by the ancient abbey ruins, and is
the estate’s oldest building; its earliest parts are older than any visible part
of the abbey.
The mill is an historic and archaelogical treasure, perhaps the best preserved
watermill in England, it is the only 12th century Cistercian cornmill in Britain
and one of only a few surviving in Europe.
The Cistercian monks made excellent use of water power to drive the machinery
of their daily lives and the mill was built originally as a huge monastic watermill
and granary, to grind wheat, oats and barley to feed the whole abbey community
- the Abbot, monks, lay-brothers, servants, visitors and the needy. The monks’
diet was simple but wholesome with bread being the basis of every meal, therefore
the mill played a vital part in their community.
A ‘mill’ was the term for the machinery rather than the structure and it consisted
of a waterwheel and a grinding mechanism. The building housed two ‘water corne
mills’ which were originally at either end and were later re-set side by side,
on a central channel or leat. The two parallel undershot wheels turned, each powering
a pair of grindstones. The grain was stored above in huge granary spaces which
were added in the thirteenth century.
A working mill was too valuable to demolish at the Dissolution in 1539 and it
was spared because it was able to generate an income for the estate of £3 a year. Subsequent
owners maintained it, updated it and gave it new roles.
In its time the mill has also been a sawmill, a dairy operation, a stone masons’
workshop, a generating station for electricity and during the Second World War
it housed refugees.
A major conservation project, jointly funded by the National Trust and English
Heritage, began in 1993. The National Trust owns and manages the Mill whilst English
Heritage, as guardian on behalf of the government, repairs and maintains the fabric
of the building.
The work included;
- repointing of the walls,
- replacement of the decaying wooden lintels and
- insertion of steel ties to stabilise the leaning wall at the north end.
The water wheel which was added in the 1840s to drive a sawmill, was restored
on site and the millpond was cleared out, a new generator was installed and the
old turbine from 1928 was also restored, so electricity can be generated once
again and this helps power the display lighting in the mill today.
Visit the mill today and see how it was used throughout its 850 year history.
Have a go at grinding corn, see how the monks used to eat, watch an animation
about a novice monk, follow Roger Rat on his trail through the Mill, see the Mill
wheel in action and have a look at artefacts from monastic times.
The second storey is also often home to art and educational exhibitions. There
is a lift for less able visitors.
