Monument record MDR8457 - Bone Mill (remains of), Lumsdale, Matlock Town

Site of a bone mill - only the dam and dried-up mill pond remain. (1) This is thought to have been the oldest of the mills in Lumsdale, dating from the 1600s, and was fed by a leat before the dam was built. The dam burst its bank in 1947. It was a bone mill in the later 19th century. Bones were burnt in crucibles and used as pigment for paint. The mill closed in the 1920s and was later converted into a dwelling. The millpond has become silted and overgrown; however, the wheelpit survives, as does a tunnel and a shuttle that were used to empty the dam. (2) The pond was part of the redevelopment in the 1780s to provide a sufficient water supply for the cotton mill lower down the valley. It now exists as a tree-lined field, bounded on the southern side by a large dam wall. The mill predates the first pond and was in use throughout the 17th century. It was then used for various purposes over the years, but its final use was for crushing bone for fertiliser. (3) At the northern end of the scheduled monument is Pond 1 which survives as a silted but seasonally waterlogged area, lined by trees and bounded on the southern side by a large dam. The dam dates to the 1780s and is built of coursed limestone grit blocks and survives up to c. 2.5m in height. Immediately south of the dam wall are the remains of the Bone Mill; low walls are evident above ground but most of the remains are earthworks surviving up to 1.5m high. Evidence of the wheel bearing suggests the wheel was only approximately 4.30m in diameter and was either overshot or breast shot. The energy was needed to power the bellows for smelting and was originally provided by leats that carried the water to and from the mill; these are still evident as earthworks. The seasonally waterlogged silts of the pond have a high level of potential for preserving organic artefacts and for the preservation of botanic remains which could enhance our understanding of the historic environment. (4)