I first spotted this place earlier in the year when I was driving back from Ivy Bank Mill in Haworth. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a chimney, way down the bottom of the valley. Having nowhere to stop as it was a narrow road, I thought I’d look for a road at the bottom of a steep valley, but there wasn’t one, just a stream.
Anyway, later on I checked out Google earth and found what looked like a ruin, so I added it to my ‘do later in the year’ list. Well it’s now later in the year, so I thought I’d better have a look! As predicted, it is indeed a ruin, but also strangely intact. I'd have got more internal photos, but for the fact it sounds like the mother of all wasps nests inside somewhere - I didn't hang around long enough to look for it!
History – the mill was built in the early 19th century and by 1850 was a worsted mill. The mill was water powered at first. The Griffe mill damstones (i.e. the weir at the head of the goit) are a few hundred yards upstream of the mill at a sharp bend in the stream. The goit is clearly traceable from there to the mill pond. The wheel pit is still visible near the end of the mill buildings - not far from the chimney. The wheel was at some time replaced by a water turbine. Some steam power was added about 1895 but water power was used to the end. A gas engine had been put in by 1923. This was apparently fed from a mains supply at Oldfield not from the mill's own gas plant. The mill shut in 1928, and would appear to have been derelict ever since! Mind you when you consider the lack of access, it’s probably no surprise!
Despite Google Earth showing Griffe Lane going down the hill from Stanbury to the mill, only the first 50 yards are recognisable as a road – the remainder is best described as a field. How on earth they got heavy loads of coal and cotton down there is anyone’s guess. This was apparently the good road down - the one on the other side of the valley was even worse!
It's in there somewhere
Unusually low door
Inside, in an outside sort of way
I felt like I was in a castle here
Chimney, with the mill lodge to the left (or mill pond as they say in yorkshire)
I'm guessing that as the chimney is above and to the right of these structures that this may have been the boiler house.
Mill lodge to the right, mill behind the trees.
Gasholder
Compare this view with the old one in the link below:
As it was:
http://www.haworth-village.org.uk/history/history-pics/large.asp?pic=122
Anyway, later on I checked out Google earth and found what looked like a ruin, so I added it to my ‘do later in the year’ list. Well it’s now later in the year, so I thought I’d better have a look! As predicted, it is indeed a ruin, but also strangely intact. I'd have got more internal photos, but for the fact it sounds like the mother of all wasps nests inside somewhere - I didn't hang around long enough to look for it!
History – the mill was built in the early 19th century and by 1850 was a worsted mill. The mill was water powered at first. The Griffe mill damstones (i.e. the weir at the head of the goit) are a few hundred yards upstream of the mill at a sharp bend in the stream. The goit is clearly traceable from there to the mill pond. The wheel pit is still visible near the end of the mill buildings - not far from the chimney. The wheel was at some time replaced by a water turbine. Some steam power was added about 1895 but water power was used to the end. A gas engine had been put in by 1923. This was apparently fed from a mains supply at Oldfield not from the mill's own gas plant. The mill shut in 1928, and would appear to have been derelict ever since! Mind you when you consider the lack of access, it’s probably no surprise!
Despite Google Earth showing Griffe Lane going down the hill from Stanbury to the mill, only the first 50 yards are recognisable as a road – the remainder is best described as a field. How on earth they got heavy loads of coal and cotton down there is anyone’s guess. This was apparently the good road down - the one on the other side of the valley was even worse!
It's in there somewhere
Unusually low door
Inside, in an outside sort of way
I felt like I was in a castle here
Chimney, with the mill lodge to the left (or mill pond as they say in yorkshire)
I'm guessing that as the chimney is above and to the right of these structures that this may have been the boiler house.
Mill lodge to the right, mill behind the trees.
Gasholder
Compare this view with the old one in the link below:
As it was:
http://www.haworth-village.org.uk/history/history-pics/large.asp?pic=122
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