Scalan, South Steading

Photographed for the Listed Buildings Area Survey 2013-14.

South Steading Mill

(See drawings SC1483801 and SC 1483803)

This one-storey (north end, byre) and two-storey (south end, waterwheel and threshing mill), rubble-built, corrugated iron roofed, rectangular steading range with long elevations to the north east and south west dates from the early 20th century. The building in its present extent is not shown on the 2nd edition Ordnance Survey 6-inch map (Banffshire, 1904 (surveyed 1900), Sheet XLI) and so post-dates 1900, but had been built by 1918 (based on graffiti found on the door at the south end, first floor - "FA Matheson ...26/3/1918"). Other graffiti dates from the 1920s and 1930s. The middle section of the current building is on the site of a roofed building depicted on the 1st edition Ordnance Survey 6-inch map (Banffshire, 1872 (surveyed 1869), Sheet XLI). This building incorporated a byre, possible milking parlour and threshing area with straw barn (with opposing doors).

The cast iron waterwheel (3.7m or 12 feet in diameter) which operated the threshing machine (William Alexander, Ribrae, Turriff, millwright and engineer) does not have a wheelhouse. The waterwheel is a breastshot 'start and awe' waterwheel. The term 'start' refers to the piece of wood secured in the rim and projecting from it, onto which the 'awe' or the wooden float or paddle was attached (at a 40 -45 degree angle). The launder fed the water directly onto the floats or paddles at the mid-point of the wheel, moving the waterwheel in a clockwise direction. The surviving portion of the lade and the launder feeding the wheel are of concrete. The elevated lade (presumably of wood) has not survived.

The waterwheels in the North Steading Mill (see NJ21NW 21.03) and the South Steading Mill are of the same diameters and type but the starts supporting the floats or paddles are longer on the North Mill. This suggests that more power was needed to operate the threshing machine in this building than in the South Steading Mill.

Visited by RCAHMS (MMD), March 2014.

As part of a graffiti art pilot project undertaken by HES in 2016, a range of graffiti was recorded within the interior of the threshing mill in the South Steading at Scalan. The graffiti in this building is concentrated towards its southern end where the threshing machine is housed. The northern end was a byre, which probably explains why there is less graffiti here. The aim of the project was to record and transcribe the graffiti that was known to have been written on many of the timber fittings, including doors, plank and lathe wall linings, the thrashing machine and some of the rafters. Given the density of the graffiti and the amount of over-writing, this description aims to group it into a range of general categories.

Most of the graffiti in the mill is concerned with the day-to-day running of the farm and on an individual level it charts people’s relationships and describes who performed what roles they undertook on the farm. In addition, there is evidence relating to global events and how they impacted on the farm, including people going to and returning from war. One door comprises a detailed climate record, which gives information over the course of a number of days, from March to June, between the years 1909 and 1919.

Visited by HES, Survey and Recording (AGCH, ZB) 7-10 June 2016.

Recording Scotland's graffiti project was designed to review the range of historic and contemporary graffiti art across Scotland. It involved desk-based assessment and fieldwork at a number of example sites, to consider recording methodologies and dissemination practices.

Between 2016 and 2017, phase 1 of the project aimed to:

Aim 1: review a range of historic and contemporary graffiti art from across Scotland, already present in Canmore.

Aim2: undertake a research review of previous approaches to recording graffiti art in Canmore and other HERs, review and develop the current Thesaurus terms.

Aim 3: test and develop a range of recording methods within the following programmes or projects: Discovering the Clyde programme (1223), Scotland’s Urban Past (1222), Architecture and Industry projects, such as Urban Recording Projects (1028), Area Photographic Survey (311) and the Tomintoul and Glenlivet Landscape Partnership (1167).

Aim 4: the following test sites will be considered for research into the range of historic and contemporary graffiti. They will be analysed to demonstrate the different ages, contexts, styles and survivals of historic and contemporary graffiti: Polphail village (Canmore ID 299112), Scalan farmstead (170726), Cowcaddens Subway Station (243099), Croick Parish Church (12503), Dalbeattie Armament Depot (76279) and Dumbarton Rock (43376).

Aim 5: to research the potential for social media to play a role in crowd-sourcing information and archiving Scotland’s graffiti art.

In 2017-2019, phase 2 of the project aimed to:

Aim 1: To enhance the NRHE to the point at which it can be said to adequately represent the broad range of historic and modern graffiti that is evident throughout Scotland, and to explore ways by which that information can best be disseminated.

Aim 2: To develop guidelines that will convey the HES approach to researching and recording graffiti.

Aim 3: To write a specification for a book on Scotland’s graffiti.

Aim 4: To develop external partnerships to explore further ways to record graffiti and to identify and explore potential funding streams to enable further knowledge exchange and research.

The project was managed by Dr Alex Hale, with contributions from staff across Herirtage and Commercial and Tourism directorates.