The Old Mill

The Old Mill is a former water-powered mill, dating to 1755, which was restored and converted into a dwelling between 1973 and 1976. The building is constructed of red brick with vitrified headers used for decorative effect, and has a clay pantile roof.

The building has a linear plan, aligned parallel to the former mill race. It is two storeys with attics, and consists of a three-bay main block with a lower, single-bay range attached to the east end, which is single-storey and attic. A basement area, previously enclosed within a lean-to structure that housed the water wheel, is located below the ground floor.

The west gable, facing Bridge Street, features a central double doorway with three-panel doors, set within a flat, rubbed brick arch with a painted keystone. Wide storey bands mark the first and attic floor levels, and two first-floor windows have two-light horizontal glazing-bar sashes, each set within flat, rubbed brick heads with keystones. A large keyed oculus sits within the gable apex. A rectangular plaque above the doorway reads 'Francis Julien, Engineer 1755', and a smaller plaque to the right of the doorway states 'Reconstructed 1973-76 by Louth Civic Trust Ltd. for the people of Louth. Architects :-Wm Saunders and Partners.' The north elevation has six-over-six pane vertical sash windows to the ground floor and two-light horizontal glazing-bar sashes to the upper floor; a wide storey band is above the ground-floor windows. The south elevation has three two-light horizontal sashes to the upper floor, with modillioned eaves, and a storey band below cill level. The lower floor has three tall six-over-six pane sashes, which were not present in William Brown’s circa 1853 panorama of the area. The basement area has a blocked, arched opening at its base, which may have housed the wheel shaft.

The interior has been altered to create residential accommodation, likely during or shortly after the 1973-76 restoration. A section of the shuttle mechanism, which controlled the water flow to the wheel house, remains at the south-west corner of the building. No other original fixtures and fittings relating to the mill’s use as a water mill are currently known to survive.