Barry Mill
Encyclopedia
Barry Mill is a working Category A listed watermill
in Barry
, Angus
in eastern Scotland
. It is owned and operated by the National Trust for Scotland
as an educational tourist attraction. Situated in a secluded area beside the Barry Burn (the watercourse, which provides its power), the mill lies about half a mile north of the village of Barry, near the town of Carnoustie
. It is a three floor building, containing a meal floor (basement), a milling floor and a top (or "bin floor"). A site for several mills since at least 1539, Barry Mill was commercially operational until 1984; it was then restored, and has been operated by the Trust since 1992. It was threatened with closure in March 2009, but has remained open due to local support, and the securing of external funding.
s into oatmeal
. (Oatmeal being a staple foodstuff, that in the past commonly formed part of the basic diet in Scotland.) Originally, the oats arrived in sacks from the neighbouring farms and had already been threshed
. (There is an example of traditional threshing machine on display at the mill.) The oats were then dried in the mill's peat-fired kiln
and then sent down a chute to the meal floor to be collected in sacks again. Today the oats arrive already processed, but the rest of the milling continues in the traditional style.
The oats are hoisted to the bin floor at the top of the mill, from where they are emptied into a hopper that feeds one of the mill's two pairs of millstone
s situated on the mill floor. This pair of sandstone millstones shells the grain, and the output is then sent down a chute to the basement where the shelled oats ("groats") are separated from the husks using a fan. The groats are then hoisted back to the top floor and fed through the second pair of millstones (made of French burr stone). This produces the oatmeal, which descends to the basement for bagging.
The mill is powered by the Barry Burn: there is a working dam and lade half a mile upstream, which channel water to the mill wheel. The wheel is 15 in 6 in (4.72 m) diameter, and is powered by the water dropping down from the lade on downstream side of the overshot waterwheel . The mill's power is controlled by a series of levers, cogs and gears in the basement. These supply power to the millstones, to the hoists, and the to a fan that is used to separate the groats from the chaff.
in Fife: a corn mill ("the Nether Mill") and an oat mill ("the Over Mill"). The properties of the abbey were annexed by the crown in 1587 as a result of the Scottish Reformation
, and were granted to James Elphinstone, 1st Lord Balmerino
in 1605. The mills were sold to a Robert Watson in the late 17th century and subsequently inherited by Watson's son-in-law, Robert Gardyne in the 1680s.
Milling at the Nether Mill was discontinued and the structure, dating to 1783, is now used as a store building. In 1811, the Over Mill (which became known simply as "Barry Mill") was destroyed by a fire and the today's structure dates from its rebuilding by the owner, Thomas Gardyne
of Middleton and Barry, in 1814. The mill was further extended in the 1930s, before being purchased by the Gunn family in 1950. Barry Mill continued to produce oatmeal until the late 1970s. After that time it was used only to produce animal feed, until flood damage to the mill lade finally ended commercial operations in 1984.
The derelict mill was acquired by the National Trust for Scotland in 1988, and was fully restored over the next four years, to the condition it had enjoyed in 1814). It was reopened by the Trust in 1992, and has since operated on a demonstration basis. Demonstrations are offered at weekends or for parties by prior arrangement, although the mill is also operational at other times. The mill's stables have been converted into a visitor centre, and the mill itself also contains displays about the life and work of both mill and millers.
The mill and the nearby bridge which was part of the old road from Barry Grange to Panbride were both granted Category B listed buildings status by Historic Scotland in 1971. The Nether Mill building was granted Category C listing in 1980.
Barry Mill was granted category A listing in December 2009.
Watermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
in Barry
Barry, Angus
Barry is a small village in Angus, Scotland at the mouth of the River Tay. The recent completion of a bypass for the village on the A930 road from Dundee to Carnoustie is something that was originally planned before the Second World War. There is a water mill operated by the National Trust for...
, Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
in eastern Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is owned and operated by the National Trust for Scotland
National Trust for Scotland
The National Trust for Scotland for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, commonly known as the National Trust for Scotland describes itself as the conservation charity that protects and promotes Scotland's natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations to...
as an educational tourist attraction. Situated in a secluded area beside the Barry Burn (the watercourse, which provides its power), the mill lies about half a mile north of the village of Barry, near the town of Carnoustie
Carnoustie
Carnoustie is a town and former police burgh in the council area of Angus, Scotland. It is situated at the mouth of the Barry Burn on the North Sea coast...
. It is a three floor building, containing a meal floor (basement), a milling floor and a top (or "bin floor"). A site for several mills since at least 1539, Barry Mill was commercially operational until 1984; it was then restored, and has been operated by the Trust since 1992. It was threatened with closure in March 2009, but has remained open due to local support, and the securing of external funding.
Operation
When in operation, the mill processes oatOat
The common oat is a species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name . While oats are suitable for human consumption as oatmeal and rolled oats, one of the most common uses is as livestock feed...
s into oatmeal
Oatmeal
Oatmeal is ground oat groats , or a porridge made from oats . Oatmeal can also be ground oat, steel-cut oats, crushed oats, or rolled oats....
. (Oatmeal being a staple foodstuff, that in the past commonly formed part of the basic diet in Scotland.) Originally, the oats arrived in sacks from the neighbouring farms and had already been threshed
Threshing
Threshing is the process of loosening the edible part of cereal grain from the scaly, inedible chaff that surrounds it. It is the step in grain preparation after harvesting and before winnowing, which separates the loosened chaff from the grain...
. (There is an example of traditional threshing machine on display at the mill.) The oats were then dried in the mill's peat-fired kiln
Kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, or oven, in which a controlled temperature regime is produced. Uses include the hardening, burning or drying of materials...
and then sent down a chute to the meal floor to be collected in sacks again. Today the oats arrive already processed, but the rest of the milling continues in the traditional style.
The oats are hoisted to the bin floor at the top of the mill, from where they are emptied into a hopper that feeds one of the mill's two pairs of millstone
Millstone
Millstones or mill stones are used in windmills and watermills, including tide mills, for grinding wheat or other grains.The type of stone most suitable for making millstones is a siliceous rock called burrstone , an open-textured, porous but tough, fine-grained sandstone, or a silicified,...
s situated on the mill floor. This pair of sandstone millstones shells the grain, and the output is then sent down a chute to the basement where the shelled oats ("groats") are separated from the husks using a fan. The groats are then hoisted back to the top floor and fed through the second pair of millstones (made of French burr stone). This produces the oatmeal, which descends to the basement for bagging.
The mill is powered by the Barry Burn: there is a working dam and lade half a mile upstream, which channel water to the mill wheel. The wheel is 15 in 6 in (4.72 m) diameter, and is powered by the water dropping down from the lade on downstream side of the overshot waterwheel . The mill's power is controlled by a series of levers, cogs and gears in the basement. These supply power to the millstones, to the hoists, and the to a fan that is used to separate the groats from the chaff.
History
The earliest reference to a mill on this site dates from 1539. Indeed, there were originally two mills on the Barry Burn, both owned by Balmerino AbbeyBalmerino Abbey
Balmerino Abbey, or St Edward's Abbey, in Balmerino, Fife, Scotland, was a Cistercian monastic community founded in 1227 to 1229 by monks from Melrose Abbey with the patronage of Ermengarde de Beaumont and King Alexander II of Scotland. It remained a daughter house of Melrose. It had approximately...
in Fife: a corn mill ("the Nether Mill") and an oat mill ("the Over Mill"). The properties of the abbey were annexed by the crown in 1587 as a result of the Scottish Reformation
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was Scotland's formal break with the Papacy in 1560, and the events surrounding this. It was part of the wider European Protestant Reformation; and in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the re-establishment of the church along Reformed lines, and politically in...
, and were granted to James Elphinstone, 1st Lord Balmerino
James Elphinstone, 1st Lord Balmerino
James Elphinstone, 1st Lord Balmerino was a Scottish nobleman and politician, disgraced in 1609.-Life to 1605:He was the third son of Robert Elphinstone, 3rd Lord Elphinstone, by Margaret, daughter of Sir John Drummond of Innerpeffray, and was born about 1553...
in 1605. The mills were sold to a Robert Watson in the late 17th century and subsequently inherited by Watson's son-in-law, Robert Gardyne in the 1680s.
Milling at the Nether Mill was discontinued and the structure, dating to 1783, is now used as a store building. In 1811, the Over Mill (which became known simply as "Barry Mill") was destroyed by a fire and the today's structure dates from its rebuilding by the owner, Thomas Gardyne
Thomas Gardyne
Thomas Gardyne of Middleton and Finavon was a Scottish laird and founder of the village of Friockheim in Angus, Scotland.-Family:He was the third son of James Gardyne of Lawton and Middleton and Mary Wallace, daughter of Thomas Wallace a merchant, ship-owner and Provost of Arbroath.-Friockheim:A...
of Middleton and Barry, in 1814. The mill was further extended in the 1930s, before being purchased by the Gunn family in 1950. Barry Mill continued to produce oatmeal until the late 1970s. After that time it was used only to produce animal feed, until flood damage to the mill lade finally ended commercial operations in 1984.
The derelict mill was acquired by the National Trust for Scotland in 1988, and was fully restored over the next four years, to the condition it had enjoyed in 1814). It was reopened by the Trust in 1992, and has since operated on a demonstration basis. Demonstrations are offered at weekends or for parties by prior arrangement, although the mill is also operational at other times. The mill's stables have been converted into a visitor centre, and the mill itself also contains displays about the life and work of both mill and millers.
The mill and the nearby bridge which was part of the old road from Barry Grange to Panbride were both granted Category B listed buildings status by Historic Scotland in 1971. The Nether Mill building was granted Category C listing in 1980.
Barry Mill was granted category A listing in December 2009.
Closure threat
In 2009, the mill was one of the least visited of the Trust's properties, attracting about 2,000 annual visitors. In March 2009, the Trust, facing financial difficulties, listed the loss-making Barry Mill as one of 11 of its properties threatened with immediate closure, unless external sponsorship could be found. The intention was to "moth-ball" the mill until financial circumstances were better. On 25 March, at a public meeting, "Friends of Barry Mill" was formed in an attempt to raise funds and to campaign to save the mill. In July 2009, the Trust announced that the property would continue to operate "for the foreseeable future" and that this was made possible due to support pledged by Angus Council and the Gibson Graham Charitable Trust.External links
- Barry Mill on the National Trust for Scotland website.
- Barry Mill article in Undiscovered Scotland.