Description
Milton Mill is the best preserved example of a mid-19th century corn mill surviving in the Stirling area, located in an area of the town characterised by its historical mills and retaining most of its internal workings including the internal water wheel and gearings. The building consists of a 3-storey, rectangular plan corn mill and a 2-storey threshing mill (perhaps earlier) with a small lean-to charf (alternatively called 'chaff' - the seed coverings separated by threshing) store adjoining the principal (SE) elevation and a single-storey husk store adjoining to the rear. The mill is powered by a lade running from the NW, with water sourced from the nearby Bannock burn. Built from squared, tooled rubble, with squared rubble surrounds and polished margins to openings. The sides and rear of the threshing mill are of much smaller rubble stone, with thick mortar courses. The original mill building is now surrounded to the SW and NW by late 20th century, corrugated-iron farm buildings. Description: very few changes have been made to the external fabric of the mill building. Central doorway to SE (principal) elevation of larger corn mill, with 1st floor winnowing door directly above. A single doorway formerly sat to the left of this central bay, now replaced by a later 20th century, large sliding door. Ground floor windows to right and single1st floor window to the outer bay. The meeting point of the main mill building and the adjoining threshing mill is hidden by single storey, lean-to charf store (possibly a later addition), adjoining at right angles to the main building. This lean-to has a corrugated iron roof (previously slated), with doorways to both returns (left doorway blocked). The threshing mill is 2 bay, to the left bay a doorway and upper wind door, and windows to ground and 1st floor of the right bay. Both sides of the mill are gabled with stone skews, with a single wind door to the upper of the NE gable. The rear is mostly obscured by 20th century additions, with only 2 openings at 1st floor level of the main corn mill building. A single storey, piended roofed husk store sits off-centre left at ground floor, adjoining at right angles. The mill lade enters to the immediate left of the husk store, formerly through a sluice gate (now partially removed) and a rubble arched opening in the rear wall of the threshing mill. The tooled stone lade sits just below the eaves level of the husk store as a result of ground level changes. Interior: the interior has changed little since production stopped in the 1970s, although the drying kiln to the left side of the corn mill has been removed, as has the threshing machinery. The remaining workings are thought to date from the early 20th century. To the threshing mill, the cast-iron and timber water wheel remains in place at ground floor, attached to the wall dividing it from the corn mill (providing the power for both mills). The machinery formerly at 1st floor has been removed. In the corn mill, the water wheel gearing remains in place (all cast-iron, apart from the spur wheel which is cast-iron with wooden teeth), linked through the dividing wall to the wheel. Also at ground floor are 2 wooden grain elevators and 2 hoppers. At 1st floor, 2 millstones remain, with a 3rd removed. The 2 adjacent stones were for shelling grain, whilst the 3rd was a burrstone, with a plaque inscribed: Smiths of Edinburgh. Also at 1st floor is the bevel gear for the threshing mill (feeding through the dividing wall) with a cast-iron drive gear linking to ground floor. At 2nd floor level, the kiln drying floor has been replaced by a wooden floor, and sack hoist gearing survives in the roof space. Fixed wooden ladder steps provide circulation, and the floor structure is composed of a central row of wooden columns with carved pad heads, supporting large exposed timber beams running the length of both mill buildings and later 20th century, timber sheet flooring. Materials: random rubble, some squared; heavily pointed in places. Large, squared rubble, long and short quoins; squared rubble surrounds to openings with polished margins; rubble lintels and cills. Stone skews. Random replacement windows; some timber sash and case. Cast-iron skylights to roofs. Timber boarded doors; narrow double doors to wind doors; later, timber boarded sliding door to corn mill. Pitched roofs, grey slates. Cast-iron rainwater goods.
Statement of Interest
Milton Mill sits in a grouping of 5 mill buildings that are marked on the 1st edition OS map (1862), consisting of a flour mill, 2 woollen mills, the historic Beaton's Mill and this building. A mill is marked on the site of Milton on Timothy Pont's map of the area, dating from the late 16th century. Beaton's mill is infamous as the supposed site of the murder of James III after the battle of Sauchieburn. Milton Mill is part of an expansion of the milling industry on this site that occurred in the mid 19th century, and in the Stirling area in general. More recently the mill was included in the Scottish Industrial Archaeology Survey of 1984, when it was recorded alongside the other best preserved industrial buildings of the area, and is thought to be the only corn mill in the Stirling region that retains its mill wheel, lade and machinery. The other mills in the settlement surrounding Milton Mill have been converted to residential use or have been lost, leaving the mill building as the final unaltered example of the industrial heritage of the area. The mill was used for production of animal feed until the 1970s, having stopped milling oats in the late 1930s.
Minor update to listed building record in 2021.
External Links
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