Building record MAB17004 - LITTLE WAULKMILL, FORGLEN

Former crofts, depicted on historic mapping, no longer in use as such.

Former crofts, depicted on historic mapping, no longer in use as such. Named on the 1st edition OS map as 'Waulkmill Crofts', consisting of six buildings including a rectangular building with a projection from the west gable, two rectangular ranges and three smaller rectangular outbuildings, with an enclosure to the northeast. By the time of the 2nd edition map it has been renamed 'Little Waulkmill', consisting of three L-plan buildings, the western one a steading including a horse-mill attached to the south range, the eastern one the cottage, and the northern one a steading, with a well to the northeast and the earlier northeast enclosure no longer shown. The current edition map shows the croft buildings with some later additions and alterations. A Level 1 Standing Building Survey was carried out in June 2022 by Murray Archaeological Services prior to proposed demolition of outbuildings and redevelopment for residential use. The name of the property, Little Waulkmill/Little Waulkmill Crofts does not imply that it was ever a waulkmill for fulling cloth, the name appears to have derived from Waulkmill, a larger property 0.5 km to the west, which is shown on the 1st edition map of 1866 as having had a mill dam and lades to the buildings which would have been the mill. The earliest references to the property, in the OS Name Books of 1867-9 describe it as two cottar houses with offices (byres, outbuildings). The only parts of the existing steading which may possibly have been part of the mid-19th century crofts are the western L-plan buildings. The northern one has evidence of a chimney at the south gable and has a central door flanked by windows in the east elevation, indicators that it had originally been a dwelling. It had been rebuilt at the north gable, possibly indicating it had been truncated. This foreshortened plan is shown on the 2nd edition map, the same time as the present cottage had been built. The north end of the pair of cottar houses indicated by the elongated range of the west building on the 1st edition map became redundant and was taken down to give space to build the L-plan steading to the north. The south part of the pair of cottar houses may have remained in use as a bothy for farm workers. The outshot from the rear of this building may have been built by 1902 as two small outshots are shown on the 2nd edition map. It is possible that south range of the west buildings may have been/or be on the footprint of part of the mid-19th century steading, shown on the 2nd edition map with a horse-mill attached to its south wall. There is no surviving evidence of the horse-mill, but it does suggest that in the early 20th century this building housed a small threshing machine. The wide doorway would support such an interpretation. When the north steading was built by 1902, it had accommodation for at least 10 tied cows.

MURRAY ARCHAEOLOGICAL SERVICES, 2022, LITTLE WAULKMILL, FORGLEN, ABERDEENSHIRE: STANDING BUILDING SURVEY, SBS (Bibliographic reference). SAB7593.

Record last edited

Jun 5 2025 12:25PM