The Corn Mill

The Corn Mill is a former water mill dating to 1816, with a later extension, located in Altham. It is currently undergoing conversion into dwellings. The mill is constructed of coursed sandstone with a stone slate roof in two levels, featuring chimneys on the left gable and at the junction of its sections. The building follows a roughly L-shaped plan with an outshut at the front of the left end and a projecting double-pile extension at the right end. It is built into a hillside above a river, resulting in three storeys at the front and four at the rear. A shouldered stone plaque, lettered "Erected BY E. TOPHAM Esquire 1816" is centrally positioned on the second floor. The building features numerous square window openings and doors on both the front and rear elevations, and a set of three-tier warehouse doors are situated in front of the extension. At the left end is a low boiler house, and a tapering cylindrical stone chimney with a moulded collar and cap is also present. The mill operated as a corn mill until the mid-18th century. Subsequently, it served various purposes, including an ice works, a wheelwright's shop, and from 1906 to 1947, the manufacture of heald staves.