A couple of relatively recent reports suggested that this might be worth further inspection. It's pretty empty but a mill is a mill after all.
Visited with @HughieD - entry was pretty funny, taking an unnecessarily complicated route, before eventually using a much more obvious means of entry.
History
A planning committee report describes the mill as follows:
Hermitage Mill is a Grade II Listed building located on Hermitage Lane, Mansfield adjacent to its Mill pond to the east and the Local Nature Reserve known as the Hermitage. Further to the east again is Kings Mill viaduct now a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Hermitage Mill was built along with a number of other textile mills along the river Maun in approximately 1780. The original structure was constructed from local sandstone and is arranged over lower ground, ground, first, second floors and attic level. By the 1870's the mill was extended with a large southern brick extension and a flat roof extension on its north end. Other additions included an engine house, by 1878, and boiler room.
The mill was occupied as a builder's merchants from the 1950's until 2008 since when it has been vacant.
(Source: https://portal.mansfield.gov.uk/CMADattachments/2018/Planning Applications Committee/Attachments/2018_07_02_00016735_2018-0098-FUL Hermitage Mill.doc)
The grade 2 listing describes the mills main features of interest:
Grace’s Guide has the following sales listing from 1948:
1848 'IMPORTANT SALE. — LACE MACHINERY.— POWERFUL LATHES, PLANEING MACHINE, POWER DRILL and TOOLS, LARGE PUNCHING Press, 15 Tons New and Old Iron, 12-Horse Condensing Engine, 4 Pairs of Smith's Bellows, 10 Anvils, 40 Pairs of Vices, 25 Trueing Plates, of various sizes, immense quantity of Smith's Tools, about 400 Feet of Ash Benching, Shelves, Counters, and a great variety of other useful and valuable Property, and a flat-bottomed Pleasure Boat.
Mr. BLACKWELL respectfully announces his instructions from Mr. James Fisher, to SELL by AUCTION, on the Premises at Hermitage Mill, near Mansfield, on Monday and Tuesday, the 5th and 6th days of June next, commencing at Eleven o'Clock each day, and to continue without intermission to the conclusion of the day's business,
The whole of the above very valuable and interesting Property. The Lace Machinery has been erected on the Premises at immense cost, and is known to be the very best in the Trade. The Lathes are by Fox, of Derby. The Power Drill and Planeing Machine by Messrs,. Sharp and Roberts, of Manchester. The whole plant has been fitted up in the best and most substantial manner, and will be found equal to new.
Catalogues, with full descriptions may be had of the AUCTIONEER, Long Row, Nottingham ....'
(Source: https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Hermitage_Mill_(Mansfield))
And last year, plans were announced for conversion of the site into a care home: https://www.chad.co.uk/news/plans-t...-mill-in-mansfield-into-a-care-home-1-9024392
The photos
External, for comparison with the archive black and white version above.
Round the back - more of the old mill is visible here as a lot is obscured at the front by the more recently added sections. There's some new-ish double glazed roof windows up the top, presumably part of some tentative restoration work to stop the elements getting in at some point.
From the top... The top floor was the most photogenic bit...
I think 'mill green' might be one of my favourite colours...
And the floors below...
There was some archive paperwork laying about on one of the floors, most of which was from 1950s...
Some patterned flooring...
And as we were making our way to the exit, we heard some movement outside. Turned out to be a couple of lads discussing whether they were going to go in or not. Not wanting to scare them I called out 'hello', and poked my head out of the entry, only to see them legging it away at double speed....
Before exiting I checked out this particularly dark room. I apologise for the shoddy nature of the next two pics but my torch was low on battery. You can just make out the tunnel (now blocked) heading out towards the mill pond at the back of the site.
And a pic from outside, showing the water flowing from the mill pond alongside the mill site. (Smelled enticingly sewer fresh along here tbh, but waders are for another less rainy day...)
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