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MHG13301 - Watermill - Lamigo Bay

Summary

The remains of a horizontal water-mill with a modern re-building associated.

Type and Period (1)

Protected Status

Full Description

Greatly reduced remains of horizontal watermill - traces still evident

A rapid coastal zone assessment survey was conducted by GUARD in the Autumn of 1997 commissioned by Historic Scotland from the Viking and Early Settlement Archaeological Research Project based at the University of Glasgow.

On a level, grassed area defined by the curve of a burn at the N/NW and the base of a natural scarp to the S/SW are the remains of a horizontal water-mill with a modern re-building associated. Although this is mentioned in the NMRS, the entry is perfunctory and unattributed. The modern re-build is a dry-stone, rectangular building with rounded corners, This measures 1 lm NW-SE by 8 m externally, The walls are 0.6 m thick and stand to a maximum of 7 courses (1.1m) of un-dressed slabs and blocks. Around the interior of this structure are eight crucks of freshly-skinned wood which are in situ (although one has fallen over) within slots in the dry-stone walling. These crucks lie on slabs at the base of the slots and stand 1.7 m high. The entrance to this structure is 0.75 m wide and paved. The structure appears to be currently under construction. There are piles of masonry waiting to be laid in the interior which have some undergrowth covering them, suggesting that it is some time since this site has been worked on. There is an aperture through the wall at the SE end of the west side which is 0.4 m high and wide and 1.2 m thick and roofed with slabs. This would appear to be the in-flow point from the head-race (lade) leading from the mill-pond to the west of the mill. At this point, the inside of the structure has a stone-faced well 1.5 m deep which covers one-third of the floor space. This area is flooded but presumably represents the under-house for the wheel.

At the far side of the under-house, opposite the aperture described, is another opening 1.1 m high, 0.6 m wide and is roofed with slabs. This would appear to be the out-flow from the under-house which leads to the tail-race, a channel that is 0.6 m deep and 1 m wide. The channel for this has been deliberately excavated, although there is no obvious revetment of the sides visible through the dense undergrowth. At the NW corner of the dry-stone structure is a short length of dry-stone walling leading to the burn. This feature has one course of boulders visible and is almost completely turfed-over. This may be an original feature at the site. Leading from the burn up-stream to the structure is the head-race or lade. This is characterised by a large up-cast bank which runs NE-SW for 20 m and is up to S m wide. This bank is 1.5 m high and is 2m from the burn with which it runs parallel, The natural slope at the SE of the race has apparently been cut into to make it steeper and some of the earth from here may have been used in constructing the bank which has some stone visible in its fabric. There is a rotted wooden sluice which crosses the burn at the head of the lade. This consists of two wooden uprights with stone revetment at the base to narrow the flow of the water. There are some slumped wooden cross-pieces which span the burn between the two uprights.

There is a dry-stone dyke which runs diagonally down the slope above the lade which survives to five rough courses and is tumbled and turf-clad. This dyke continues to the north and west of the mill-pond as a broad bank 2.5 m wide and 0.8 m high and is aligned NE-SW. There are three courses of stone visible along the south side of this bank which runs for 19 m from the base of the slope back to the thy-stone structure. There is a 4 m wide gap in this bank at the west end of the mill-pond which presumably held the mechanism by which the flow of water from the lade to the pond was controlled. The mill-pond itself is pear-shaped and measures 15 m NE-SW by 10 m and is defined by a bank on the north and west and by a natural scarp on the north, This area is still flooded. There is a 1 m diameter miII-stone leaning against the scarp which has a central perforation and rectangular fittings for a bracket. The north bank of the burn is stone-revetted for 35 m which has canalised the flow of the water. There is also stone-revetment of the bank up-stream from the lade, which may indicate re-modelling of the site for a wooden lade or chute leading from higher up-stream, below a water-fall, in times of lower water.

This site is a curious mixture of original features and modern attempts to re-use the complex. The land owners (Gavin and Kay Lockhart) explained that they had been trying for years to get this mill-site back into working order and had used a excavation machine to unearth the mill-stone. They had been liaising with Graham Douglas of the RCAHMS with whom they had lodged sketches, notes and photographs of their work. (Unfortunately, this is not cross-referenced in the NMRS). They also informed the surveyors that the original mill is mentioned in the rent rolls of the Sutherland Estate for December 1789. In the course of excavation at the site there had been pockets of red peat-ash noted, a line of rotten timber in the soil at a considerable depth, pieces of corroded-iron and deposits of clay. The project seems to have been abandoned for lack of financial support. Future excavations in the area should be supervised more closely. <1>

NGR adjusted based on 2009 vertical aerial photographs. <2>

Sources/Archives (2)

Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred NC 6510 6334 (13m by 11m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	NC66SE
Geographical Area	SUTHERLAND
Civil Parish	TONGUE

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