Mill near Leitrim Bridge, Leitrim Rd, Hilltown, Newry, Co Down, BT34 5XS

This complex of buildings near Leitrim Bridge represents a former water-powered mill, likely constructed between 1800 and 1819. Located on the left bank of the Leitrim River, north of the road bridge, the site includes a one-storey mill building at the northeast corner, with a surviving wheel pit on its north gable. A two-storey range abuts the south gable, the part closest to the mill being a grain drying kiln. At right angles to the original mill is a one-storey shed. All buildings have pitched roofs; the main mill and kiln ranges are covered with natural slate, while the shed has a corrugated metal roof. The walls are of random rubble construction. A mill pond, embanked to the west and linked to a section on the south side of the road by a culvert, provided water power.

The mill was initially recorded as a corn mill on an 1834 Ordnance Survey map and was owned by Francis Lindsay at the time. The overshot wheel measured 13 feet in diameter by 2 feet 6 inches wide. The 1838 valuation noted the presence of a kiln. By 1859, the site was marked as a “corn mill and kiln” on Ordnance Survey maps. Around 1860, the corn mill ceased operation and was converted to a flax scutching mill, involving six stocks and ownership passing to Thomas O'Hagan. This appears to have been located within the shed at right angles to the original corn mill. The mill continued to operate until at least 1929. The buildings are now recorded as derelict and are of industrial archaeological interest.