257

 

II  

Designated  

13/03/1974  

17/02/1998  

Melin y Bwlch  

 

Conwy  

Cerrigydrudion  

Cerrigydrudion  

Cerrigydrudion  

296141  

348475  

 

The mill is located on a minor road just off the road to Llanfihangel, approximately 700m from the centre of Cerrigydrudion.  

Industrial  

 

The mill is probably of C18 or early C19 origin. The mill and mill house were two separate buildings, later linked by a kiln building, the house and kilns being converted to a dwelling house in c1975, and the mill building now serves as a workshop. The mill, which was on the Mainwaring Estate, was brought back into use during the 1939-1945 World War.  

Water driven corn-mill of C18 to early C19 date. Range of stone buildings with slate roofs laid out on S sloping ground, with the E-W flowing Nant-y-felin S of the mill diverted to a stone lined millpond on the N side, with a culvert running underneath the W end of the mill, discharging back into the stream. The mill building is of 2 storeys with doors at each end of the S side, and irregularly placed windows with deep slate lintels. Attached to the W two single bay structures independently roofed, with similar C19 timber windows, and a raised access to the upper floor against the mill gable, and a louvred kiln ventilator on the roof. The mill house runs N-S at the W end, of similar construction, with a raised access on its W face and a raking roof. A further kiln ventilator on the ridge.  

A slate-built launder from the high level mill pond enters the mill at first floor level on the N side, discharging into a wooden 'cupboard' over the overshot iron wheel with wooden buckets, the ironwork cast by W Hughes, of Plas Kynaston, Ruabon. From the wheel, a wooden shaft drives a cast-iron pit wheel in an adjoining compartment, which engages a cast iron wallower on a wooden vertical shaft. This drives a cast iron great spur wheel with an attached crown ring of eight sections. Two wooden toothed iron stone nuts take the drive to the underdrift stones. Auxiliary belt drives, now dismantled, go to an oatmeal sifter fan, and a sifter. At the back, the crown wheel drives a square-section layshaft, with pulleys for a wire machine and sack hoist. The encased wire machine survives, set high against the S wall, and on the NW wall there is an oats machine with husk cupboard. The upper floor is divided into three sections, one over the water wheel for storage, the stone floor in the middle section, and hoppers and hoists at the E end. One pair of stones are French Burr; assembled by Barron & Son, Gloucester, the other (not seen) are of granite, presumably for animal feedstuffs, the casings are dismantled but are retained in the mill. The roof is of 2 king-post trusses, with an attic floor between them, and contains the sack hoist beam and pulley. The earlier kiln is in the W wing to the mill; while the added second kiln is in the N end of the present house. Both were fired from a square room in the S of the present house. Both had perforated ceramic tile floors supported on axial iron strips and wedge-section beams welded together, on brick piers, set above the firebox. The kilns have been largely removed to make way for domestic accommodation.  

Included as an important and well preserved corn and oats mill which retains a large part of its original early C19 machinery.