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Restoring the second waterwheel

Door to the watermill at Acorn Bank, a red brick building in a cobbled courtyard. To the left of the door is a blackboard with coloured writing, and there's bunting across the building.
The working watermill at Acorn Bank | © National Trust Images/Annapurna Mellor

90 years after it was last used, the volunteer team at Acorn Bank Watermill have been hard at work preparing to restore the second waterwheel.

Over the winter, replacement cast iron shrouds have been made, and the water channel has been extended to feed water along from the existing wheel.

Excitingly, the team have managed to find replacements for the internal mill gearing, which was removed and scrapped in the 1920s when the second wheel was modified to power equipment in the estate’s gypsum mines. They’ve been sourced from a derelict mill in South Wales, the Felin Cwm mill. This will allow us to use the wheel to drive equipment for the first time in nearly a century.

On Saturdays in February, during Snowdrop Weekends, guided tours of the mill will show the progress being made. Tours will begin at 1pm, starting at the Shepherds Hut, and will last about an hour.

For more information about Acorn Bank Watermill, visit the Acorn Bank Watermill Trust website.

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