Craigo Mill

Craigo Mill: flax, later jute spinning mill, founded in c1800. Owned from 1817 by John Maberley, then his successor in 1830, Richards and Co, of Broadford Works, Aberdeen, then passed to J & D Wilkie of Kirriemuir from 1885 so as to ensure that firm’s own jute yarn supplies. The plain between the lade and River North Esk has many drying frames of wire and steel, in order to receive fire damaged jute bales whenever there was a fire in Dundee. Here there was sufficient space to sort the jute, and deal with the spontaneous reignition to which these bales were prone. A large number of timber-framed corrugated iron-clad warehouses is there for the same reason. The mill itself is mainly early 20th century, apart from the older mechanics workshop. Spinning stopped in 1988. The weir on the North Water is by Marykirk Bridge (M10) South east, and utilising the same lade, another early spinning mill, Logie, was founded by Aberdein Gordon and Co (subsequently at Union Street Mill, Montrose, 1837) before 1805, and continued by that firm until 1860. A small mill has been adapted as a house, with an extra storey. The little settlement for workers on the higher ground near the railway line includes Logie School House, NO6980 6353. This clay building was rescued in 2004-8 by the Little Houses Improvement Scheme of the National Trust for Scotland (Europa Nostra Award 2011) and is now rented out.

M Watson, 2013

NO66SE 39 6895 6460

This former jute spinning complex is now used predominantly as warehousing. Formerly a works operated by J & D Wilkie Ltd of Kirriemuir, it was closed and sold in 1987. The mill was previously owned by Richards of Aberdeen (in the 19th century).

By 1987 it was one of 6 jute spinning mills in the UK. and was the last vretivcally integrated comanies (including weaving and calendering).

the cursher (probably ULRO, Dundee) and the dust shaker (1907, FLCB) are the oldest machines. The rest was post 1945, but impressive. There were many 20th century corrugated-iron warehouses. The water system, weir and lades could potentially date to the c.1770 bleachfield. There were extensive areas of jute drying frames in the fields for the drying of wet jute from Dundee. The mill, formerly owned by Richards of Aberdeen (34 h.p. steam engine, 150 hands in 1864) appears to have been rebuilt as a single storey unit in 1909, subsequently added to and altered.

Visited by RCAHMS (MKO) 8 March 1996 and information (verbal) from M Watson, Historic Scotland, 28 October 1987.

The works have probably been mostly rebuilt as a single-storeyed, mostly rubble-built unit in 1909, and most of the jute warehouses, many of which are corrugated sheet metal structures, originate from after that date

Information from Mark Watson, Historic Scotland, March 1996.