Mills in South Dublin County in 1850

Haarlem Mills

Haarlem Mills, Old Bawn, Tallaght, Dublin.

Courtesy of Blackrock Education Centre

Haarlem Mills
Courtesy of Blackrock Education Centre

Haarlem Mills

Haarlem Mills, Old Bawn, Tallaght, Dublin.

Courtesy of Blackrock Education Centre

Enlarge image

Over time, mills ceased operations, new mills opened for business or the functions of mills changed as their ownership changed or as demand for various products grew or waned.

For example Haarlem Mills in Tallaght were originally established around 1776 by Haarlem and Company who were calico printers. By 1836 there were four mills at the site altogether, the first, a flour mill, was operated by the McCracken family up until 1863, and then by Thomas and John Neill. Next there were two mills close together, one a woollen mill and the other a flour mill. These were operated by Manus Neill and later passed to Thomas and John Neill. These were idle from about 1886. The next mill was down nearer to the Dodder River. In Malet's report of 1844 it is named Neill's Woollen Mills, but a few years later it is described as a flour mill. In 1879 it was also owned by Thomas and John Neill and it was closed down before the end of the century.

An examination of the mills listed in Griffith's Valuation of c. 1850 gives us a good idea of the various types of mills in South Dublin County and their locations. There were 27 mills in South Dublin County at the time.