Charterhall Sawmill
Another one from mine and Dan's trip up to Scotland back in the spring. We spent the weeks before the trip digging online as usual, and I found a post regarding this sawmill on an online forum, it was a single photo of an outbuilding with no description other than 'disused saw mill - external view of the switchroom"
It's not too clear on satellite images as those of you who have tried to find places in Scotland using Google Maps will be well aware of, so I didn't know how big the site was or what would still be there.
The sawmill is situated close to Blackadder Water in an area of Charterhall Wood, just north of RAF Charterhall. It covers a large area, with the sawmill up top, and heading down a rocky escarpment sits some pumping equipment inside stone buildings. The lade that feeds this equipment is very long, it's now all dried up with trees and bushes growing in it.
There is no history of this site online, the only record of its existence is on some older OS maps. It first appears on maps in 1862, I should imagine that was a far more rudimentary affair than what stands there today. The last time I could see the building was used was around October 2006, that date was found on a risk assessment that was in the office. I'm unsure if it was left and the roof fell in after, or it was left because it fell in while in use.
It's a shame the roof has fallen in because the main saw table is really long and would have made for a good photo, there are three saw tables that I could see. Outside are several storage buildings, and also what is labelled on maps as a cistern (water tank). Next to the cistern is a wood treating bath, and the red tank sitting at the end would have been filled with something like creosote.
Here is the site on OS maps
Starting up top at the sawmill.
Moving inside via the main door, the office on the right and the main saw table on the left of the image
Electric motors have been installed. There would have been some kind of small stationary engine, possibly diesel or paraffin, as can be seen by the concrete pad and bolts sticking up where the engine would have been mounted
A close up shot showing the saw blade on the main table
The office, liked the lighting and colours in here
The cistern and wood treatment tank
Moving down the hillside to the pumping equipment
A small petrol/paraffin stationary engine and water pump
Strange set-up here, left-hand side is the engine and water pump arrangement, on the right, there would have been another engine running a system of belts and pulleys, one of the belts would have passed through the slot in the back wall, I'm not sure what would've been the other side as a landslip had occurred at some point blocking access there
Another one from mine and Dan's trip up to Scotland back in the spring. We spent the weeks before the trip digging online as usual, and I found a post regarding this sawmill on an online forum, it was a single photo of an outbuilding with no description other than 'disused saw mill - external view of the switchroom"
It's not too clear on satellite images as those of you who have tried to find places in Scotland using Google Maps will be well aware of, so I didn't know how big the site was or what would still be there.
The sawmill is situated close to Blackadder Water in an area of Charterhall Wood, just north of RAF Charterhall. It covers a large area, with the sawmill up top, and heading down a rocky escarpment sits some pumping equipment inside stone buildings. The lade that feeds this equipment is very long, it's now all dried up with trees and bushes growing in it.
There is no history of this site online, the only record of its existence is on some older OS maps. It first appears on maps in 1862, I should imagine that was a far more rudimentary affair than what stands there today. The last time I could see the building was used was around October 2006, that date was found on a risk assessment that was in the office. I'm unsure if it was left and the roof fell in after, or it was left because it fell in while in use.
It's a shame the roof has fallen in because the main saw table is really long and would have made for a good photo, there are three saw tables that I could see. Outside are several storage buildings, and also what is labelled on maps as a cistern (water tank). Next to the cistern is a wood treating bath, and the red tank sitting at the end would have been filled with something like creosote.
Here is the site on OS maps
Starting up top at the sawmill.
Moving inside via the main door, the office on the right and the main saw table on the left of the image
Electric motors have been installed. There would have been some kind of small stationary engine, possibly diesel or paraffin, as can be seen by the concrete pad and bolts sticking up where the engine would have been mounted
A close up shot showing the saw blade on the main table
The office, liked the lighting and colours in here
The cistern and wood treatment tank
Moving down the hillside to the pumping equipment
A small petrol/paraffin stationary engine and water pump
Strange set-up here, left-hand side is the engine and water pump arrangement, on the right, there would have been another engine running a system of belts and pulleys, one of the belts would have passed through the slot in the back wall, I'm not sure what would've been the other side as a landslip had occurred at some point blocking access there
