Mill Buildings, Largy Townland, Limavady, Co Londonderry

Two former mill buildings standing at the western corner of the Roe bleach green in Largy, built between 1820 and 1839. They are constructed of stone with red brick repairs and trims to openings, both with corrugated metal roofs, and both aligned north west to south east. Although of little architectural merit, they are of interest for their connection to the industrial history of the Roe Valley and their picturesque setting at the edge of the flat former bleach green and the wooded rise above the millrace.

The smaller, single-storey building stands to the north east, closest to the River Roe some 50 metres away. Its north east elevation has three circular brick-lined window openings typical of many barns in the area. The south east gable contains a door near the east corner beside a stone gate post built into the wall, with a circular brick-lined window to the south west and a single high-level door opening near the centre line of the gable. The south west elevation has no openings. The north west gable mirrors the south east gable but without the high-level opening.

The larger, double-storey building sits adjacent to the former millrace that ran from Moore's Weir to Dogleap. Its gable apex has been rebuilt at some time in the past, with the gables above the eaves line constructed in brick. The south east gable has a single door-sized opening at first-floor level with a wooden lintel supporting a blocked-up brick arch above, and at ground level to the east a horizontally proportioned opening with an open brick arch. The south east side contains one door-sized opening at high level, with part of the wall rebuilt in brick. The north west gable has a single door-sized opening near the north corner, with the trace of a flue visible on the brickwork. The north east elevation is the most dramatic, featuring a large opening 2.5 metres wide rising from ruinous stone walls at ground level through deliberately squared brick at first-floor level to the eaves. Two-thirds of the upper floor has been rebuilt in brick, with a small square opening under the eaves at the north west end.

The buildings appear on the 1831 Ordnance Survey Map, along with a third, much longer building aligned north east to south west. They are undoubtedly associated with the nearby bleach green established in 1766 by Lesley Alexander of Newtown Limavady, which closed in 1831, perhaps explaining why they are not marked as mill buildings on the Ordnance Survey Map. The buildings do not appear as mills on any Ordnance Survey Maps and are not recorded in the Industrial Archaeology record. However, the large-scale 1907 map clearly shows a millrace diverted to pass close to the smaller building, with the third building demolished on that map to allow another millrace. It is likely that they formed part of the linen manufactury established at Largy by Richardson and Smith of Lisburn in 1832 and operated until at least the 1840s. They were probably subsequently altered for use as farm buildings, which remains their current use. They are of industrial archaeological interest.