Wren Nest Mill And Chimney And Attached Stone Wall

A cotton spinning mill with an integral engine house, dating from around 1840, with later 19th-century additions and 20th-century alterations. The building was damaged by fire in 1996 and subsequently reduced in size. It is constructed of coursed millstone grit with ashlar dressings and has stone slate and 20th-century tile roofs.

The exterior has a five-storey facade with 22 windows, and irregular four-window sides, featuring irregular window placement. The south front has 22 windows, most with eight panes on the lower four floors, with smaller windows above. Two tall, round-headed windows mark the former integral engine house on the extreme left. A single-storey extension from 1913 is situated at the front, alongside single-storey weaving sheds with north-light roofs. A block to the left incorporates a walkway to an adjacent building. A tall brick chimney stack is dated 1913.

The interior includes massive wooden cross beams with joists and compounded double skimmed boards for added strength, supported by circular section cast-iron columns, with brackets on the upper floors. The roof is of king post construction with struts, and the roof valleys have internal gutters. Original features included a sprinkler system, and later additions include an internal hoist. The doors are on a sliding rail system.

A stretch of watershot masonry walling, fronting onto High Street West, is included as a subsidiary feature. The site's earliest mill was constructed around 1800 for Lord Howard's agent, Matthew Ellinson.