Stainsby Mill

A few days ago my husband and I went to Stainsby Mill. It’s part of National Trust, along with the Hardwick Estate. The current mill was built in the 19th century. The Victorian mill is still operational.

We had a guided tour and it was lovely, we learned so many things about the mill. The most fascinating thing was how clean everything was kept in Victorian times, quite surprising. It was interesting to see how the white flour was made.

On the day we’ve been there it wasn’t enough water to power the mill as someone, most likely a local farmer, left the water running so it wouldn’t flood the fields due to rain. The guide told us the mill would resume milling the following day. It was a shame we didn’t see it in action, but even so, the tour was exciting.

At the mill there are different types of stone for flour and oats for porridge. At the water mill they used to grind wheat and rye for bread and as animal feed. One of the stones was brought from France.

At the mill there were lots of levers that were used to bring the wheat up to the 2nd floor. There was a special equipment with fans and sieves to clean the seeds from impurities like small stones and weed seeds. It seemed very complicated, but a beautiful piece of Victorian engineering. On the site of the mill there was a mill from the 13th century, but a wooden one that was replaced during the 19th century.

These were the packs of wholemeal flour that are available on the shop. I bought a couple of bags of flour to make bread and scones. The flour is from Essex or Suffolk and it’s organic. I can’t wait to use it. The staff from the shop gave me a leaflet with a few recipes and I’m going to try them.

I really enjoyed visiting the mill. I know there are a couple of mills close to Liverpool and I will visit those as well. Have you been to a working mill before?