Fountains Mill
Fountains Mill, sometimes known as Abbey Mill, is a historic building at Fountains Abbey, a World Heritage Site in North Yorkshire, in England.
The watermill was built in the 1130s or 1140s on a leet from the River Skell, as a corn mill for the abbey. It originally had a single wheel at the southern end, but it was rebuilt in the 1150s atop a dam, with a wheel at each end. In the 13th century, the upper storey was added, to serve as a granary. The Abbey closed in 1539 with the Dissolution of the Monasteries, following which the north end was demolished and replaced with a new single-storey section. The mill continued in use, and in 1840 was converted into a sawmill, the current waterwheel being installed at this time.[1][2] In 1928 a turbine was installed to convert the building to the production of electricity.[3] The mill closed in 1937, and the building then served various uses including refugee accommodation and a stonemason's workshop.[4] It was restored in 1993 for use as a museum and exhibition space.[1] It is the most substantial Cistercian mill to survive.[5] The building has been grade I listed since 1986, and is also a scheduled monument.[6]
The mill is built of gritstone with a stone slate roof, and has three stories and five bays, and a two-storey two-bay extension to the north. On the east front is a round-arched doorway, other round-arched openings and four stepped buttresses. The west front has similar openings and an attached wheelhouse. On the left return are external steps leading to a round-arched doorway with a chamfered surround, and in both returns are square-headed windows.[6][7]
See also
[edit]- Grade I listed buildings in North Yorkshire (district)
- Listed buildings in Lindrick with Studley Royal and Fountains
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Fountains Mill". Heritage Gateway. Historic England. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
- ^ "Abbey Mill, Fountains". Mills Archive. Retrieved 18 April 2025.
- ^ "Fountains Abbey Watermill". spab.org.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ "Explore Fountains Mill". National Trust. Retrieved 11 July 2022.
- ^ Keevill, Graham; Aston, Mick; Hall, Teresa (31 January 2017). Monastic Archaeology. OXBOW Books. p. 102. ISBN 978-1-78570-570-0.
- ^ a b Historic England. "Abbey Mill, Lindrick with Studley Royal and Fountains (1173325)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 April 2025.
- ^ Leach, Peter; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2009). Yorkshire West Riding: Leeds, Bradford and the North. The Buildings of England. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-12665-5.