Eskdale Mill will be hosting family-friendly activities on Sunday 14th May
Eskdale Mill will be hosting family-friendly activities on Sunday 14th May
Eskdale Mill & Heritage Trust will be hosting family-friendly activities for visitors from 11am to 3.30pm on Sunday 14th May as part of National Mills Weekend.
As well as enjoying award-winning interactive exhibitions, there will be chance to take part in a wild flower survey in their meadow and to find out more about the traditional craft of millwrighting – past and present at their historic watermill.
National Mills Weekend is the annual festival of the UK’s milling heritage, and the chance for
everyone to explore local windmills and watermills.
Eskdale Mill, based in Boot village is known as a water cornmill as it originally milled oats and barley locally grown by the rural folk of Eskdale right up until the 1930’s. There are records dating back to 1547 that reveal its rich social and industrial history and today you can still see the restored overshot waterwheels and original milling machinery in operation.
The weekend is co-ordinated by the Mills Section of the Society for the Protection of Ancient
Buildings (SPAB). National Mills Weekend is a chance for Eskdale Mill to celebrate its own unique heritage and provide extra activities to encourage more people to get involved with their interesting projects. This annual event is an opportunity for local people to step inside and find out more about the role of the mill in valley life over the centuries and understand how important water power was before the days of coal and oil. Anyone interested in volunteering can also find out more about their available roles and weekly opportunities.
The mill is regularly open to the general public from Sunday – Thursday, 10am-4.30pm where you can take a step back in time and enjoy the tranquil spaces. This year National Mills Weekend is celebrating ‘Millwrighting – Past and Present’, and
highlighting the achievements of past engineers and ingenuity of skilled craftsmen.
Eskdale Mill is also contributing to this with nature activities in support of their funded Tentergarth Improvement Project which is seeing the restoration of their historic meadow from overgrown briar to native flowers. Visitors to the mill will get the chance to take part in a flower survey which will provide a useful record of wild plants present on the day whilst enjoying a fun activity. Children and survey participants will receive free admission on this day as part of this event. Children will also have chance to dress up as millers and take part in the ‘flower power challenge’ whilst visiting the mill itself.
Mill Manager, Kate Hughes who is organising the activities said: “National Mills Weekend is a fantastic opportunity for people to explore their local heritage, and get involved in our projects here at Eskdale Mill. You will receive a warm welcome from us to our historic gem. The mill’s volunteers enjoy helping our visitors find out more about nature and local heritage. For a memorable day out, come along and celebrate our watermill.”
Further information on Eskdale Mill can be found on the mill’s website at www.eskdalemill.co.uk/visit. Parking is available at Dalegarth station, 10 minutes scenic walk away. Or you can add to your visit by taking the steam train from Ravenglass.
Information on mills open nationwide can be found on the National Mills Weekend at https://www.spab.org.uk/mills/national-mills-week
