The Old Mill

Former water-powered mill, dated 1755, restored and converted to a dwelling in 1973-6. MATERIALS: constructed of red brick with vitrified headers used for decorative effect. The roof is covered with clay pantiles.

PLAN: the building is linear in form, aligned parallel to the mill race.

EXTERIOR: of two storeys with attics and of three bays, with a lower single-bay range at the east end, of single-storey and attic form. Below the ground floor to the house is a basement area, formerly enclosed within a lean-to wheelhouse, in which the main drive from the mill's water wheel was located. The west gable faces Bridge Street and has a central double doorway with three-panel doors and a flat, rubbed brick, arched head with a painted keystone. There are wide storey bands to the first and attic floor levels, and two first-floor windows below flat, rubbed brick heads with keystones. The window frames are two-light, horizontal glazing-bar sashes. Within the gable apex is a large keyed oculus. Above the doorway is a rectangular plaque which reads 'Francis Julien, Engineer 1755' A smaller plaque to the right of the doorway reads 'Reconstructed 1973-76 by Louth Civic Trust Ltd. for the people of Louth. Architects :-Wm Saunders and Partners.' The north elevation is of three bays, with six-over-six pane, vertical sash windows to the ground floor, and two-light horizontal, glazing-bar sashes to the upper floor. There is a wide storey band above the ground-floor windows. The south elevation has three, two-light horizontal sashes to the upper floor below a modillioned eaves. Below cill level is a storey band. The lower floor has three, tall, six- over-six pane sashes. These windows do not appear on the depiction of the mill in William Brown's ' Panorama' of c.1853, being located in the area within the former wheel house. The basement area below the ground floor level has a blocked, arched opening at its base which may have housed the wheel shaft.

INTERIOR: altered to form residential accommodation. This is presumed to have taken place at the time of, or shortly after, the reconstruction of the mill between 1973 and 1976. (Not inspected 2013)

FIXTURES AND FITTINGS: there is a section of the shuttle mechanism, used to control the flow of water into the wheel house, at the south-west corner of the building. No other fixtures and fittings related to the building's use as a water mill are known to survive.