Civil Engineering heritage: Scotland - Lowlands and Borders
Date 2007
Event ID 578272
Category Descriptive Accounts
Type Publication Account
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/578272
This weir was built in 1705 to divert water from the Nith, which was causing erosion of the area known as Whitesands on the east bank. In 1707 Matthew Frew built a mill on the west bank and made use of the diverted water. The weir was often breached by Nith flood water between 1730 and the 1760s. In 1760 Smeaton was
consulted about the state of the river on navigation and erosion prevention issues. In 1768 Smeaton reported on the condition of the weir. The mill was renewed in 1769 at a cost of £990 by East Linton millwright Andrew
Meikle and the weir refurbished as necessary, essentially as it is now. In the early 20th century the lade supplied water to power a low-head turbine driving a 100kW DC generator in the mill which supplied electricity to the Troquair area of Maxwellton. This was abandoned in 1922 and the building is now Dumfries Museum’s Burns Centre.
R Paxton and J Shipway 2007
Reproduced from 'Civil Engineering heritage: Scotland - Lowlands and Borders' with kind permission from Thomas Telford Publishers.
