Mill Floors

Groundfloor Machinery

Martry Mill Machinery

Martry Mill groundfloor machinery, showing: the pit wheel, the wallower and the great spur wheel

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Martry Mill Machinery
Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Martry Mill Machinery

Martry Mill groundfloor machinery, showing: the pit wheel, the wallower and the great spur wheel

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Enlarge image

The axle connects with a large vertical wheel called a pit wheel, so named because it is located partly below floor level in a pit inside the mill wall. On this wheel are cogs which at the top connect with the cogs on a smaller wheel called a wallower. The wallower is on an upright spindle and above it is the great spur wheel. This large wheel can mesh with other smaller wheels or pinions and drive machinery on the floor above. These three wheels, the pit wheel, the wallower and the great spur wheel, are in place to allow the power coming in from the waterwheel to change from coming in on a horizontal line to going upwards on a vertical line so that the mill stones on the floor above can turn and grind the grain.

Grain Store or Hopper Floor

Martry Mill Unmilled Wheat

Unmilled wheat in the granary of Martry Mill

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Martry Mill Unmilled Wheat
Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Martry Mill Unmilled Wheat

Unmilled wheat in the granary of Martry Mill

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Enlarge image

On this floor, sometimes called the Grain Store the hopper Floor or the Granary, the grain is stored before it is milled or ground into flour for baking into bread if it is wheat or into oatmeal for porridge if it is oats. The grain can be stored in sacks or in piles on the floor.

Middle or Stone Floor

Martry Mill Granary Chute

chute/opening on middle/stone floor

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Martry Mill Granary Chute
Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Martry Mill Granary Chute

chute/opening on middle/stone floor

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Enlarge image

Here on this floor, too, is the chute or simply an opening in the floor where the grain trickles down to the millstones on the floor below. This is the middle or stone floor of the mill where grinding takes place, powered by the mill machinery on the ground floor.

The Stone Floor

Millstones

Pair of French Burr millstones for grinding wheat on display at Martry Mill

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Millstones
Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Millstones

Pair of French Burr millstones for grinding wheat on display at Martry Mill

Courtesy of Frances Tallon

Enlarge image

The millstones for grinding grain are located on this middle floor. Two large round stones are placed one on top of the other but not actually touching. The bottom stone is the bed stone and does not move, the upper one is the runner stone and it rotates. It is balanced on a metal tripod which sits on top of the shaft coming up from the great spur wheel on the ground floor. The stones that are used to grind wheat at Martry mill are French Burr stones which came from a quarry near Paris . A pair of these stones that are not currently being used in Martry mill are on display there.

They are very hard stones with a very even texture. This allows the wheat to be ground into fine wheaten meal, also called wholemeal flour, and is very suitable for making brown bread.