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MHG21722 - Watermill/sawmill - Contin

Summary

Site of demolished watermill/sawmill, Contin

Type and Period (2)

Protected Status

Full Description

Marked on 1st ed OS - HAW 03/2004

Meryl Marshall of the North of Scotland Archaeological Society produced this report on the Contin Mills in 2012.

Situation and surroundings – the course of the river Blackwater is divided into two forming an island at the village of Contin; the mills, weir and laide are situated at the south end of the village on the east branch of the river. Very little remains of the mills but oral tradition has it that the sawmill was upstream of a stone bridge which gives access to the island and the grain mill was just downstream of the bridge. The weir and lade are 200m upstream of the bridge, just below a wooden footbridge

Full description - much of the weir still exists and a wide lade can be seen exiting its east end, but the lade continues for 60m only before being destroyed by the gardens of nearby cottages. An elderly resident in the village provided the information that the saw mill was just upstream of the bridge at NH 4588 5576 and the grain mill was downstream of the bridge. The wasted stone foundations of a building can be seen at the bottom of a garden just below the bridge and may be those of the mill seen in the EB photograph.

On 1st Edition OS map (FESP site) or others. Both mills are depicted on the 1st edition OS map and are annotated as such. The weir and lade too are marked.

Photographs; An Erskine Beveridge photograph of “Contin watermill (corn mill), 1886” exists in the EB Collection at the RCAHMS, Edinburgh, it can be accessed on the Canmore website. <1>

Note; Site demolished and approximate location copied from 1st Edition OS 6". <2> (T. Blackie 17/2/22)

Sources/Archives (2)

Map

Location

Grid reference	Centred NH 4593 5559 (20m by 20m) (2 map features)
Map sheet	NH45NE
Geographical Area	ROSS AND CROMARTY
Civil Parish	CONTIN

Finds (0)

Related Monuments/Buildings (0)

Related Investigations/Events (0)

External Links (1)