Chimney Stack, Stanley Mills

This is a brick chimney stack, likely dating from around 1823 to 1833, originally built for gas production. It consists of a square section stalk from which the top over-sailer is now missing. The chimney is reinforced with seven early iron tie-bands, with cast-iron facing on the north and south sides, and braced with wrought-iron tie-rods on the east and west sides.

Adjacent to the chimney is a single-storey, hipped-roof boiler house with large windows and harled brickwork, probably constructed in the late 19th century. The remains of stone foundations mark the location of a previous circular gas-holder.

This chimney stack is currently the oldest identified gasworks chimney in Scotland, and is unlikely to have been built before 1814. Historical records suggest that Boulton and Watt held a near monopoly on gas production at the time, and their records confirm gas installation at only one Scottish mill: Broadford Works, Aberdeen, in 1814. Gas lighting, used for six months of the year (initially not for night spinning), was in operation by 1833, as recorded in correspondence with the Factory Commission. A Gothick conservatory previously occupied the site of the gas-holder, remaining until 1989.