McCrossins Mill facts for kids

The McCrossins Mill is a very old building in Uralla, Australia. It used to be a mill where grain was ground into flour, and later a store. Today, it is a museum run by the Uralla Historical Society. This important building is listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register, which means it's protected because of its history.

The Story of McCrossins Mill

Building the Mill

John McCrossin built this mill between the late 1860s and early 1870s. He hoped the New England area would become a big supplier of flour. The mill had a powerful 16-horsepower engine. It could grind about 1000 bushels of grain each week using three large mill stones.

Why the Mill Closed

Soon after the mill was finished, flour prices started to drop. John McCrossin found it hard to compete with other mills. There were two other mills in Uralla and four more in Armidale. There was also one in Inverell and another in Walcha.

Drought also made it difficult to grow wheat in New England. Plus, better quality flour was imported from South Australia. Their wheat ripened more evenly, allowing for machine harvesting. South Australian mills also used steel rollers, which made finer flour than the gritty flour from mill stones. All these reasons caused the wheat growing and milling business in New England to decline.

The Chaff Shed was likely built because of this falling trade. It was made as cheaply as possible. This helped the mill offer more services to try and stay in business.

Later Uses of the Mill

The mill probably stopped working in the 1890s. Early in the 1900s, a skin buyer bought the buildings. Later, the Cooper family owned it. They ran a hardware store and a funeral business there. During this time, part of the mill was used by Mr. Crossman, who made water tanks. The mill's engine was also moved to the Rocky River gold fields.

Around 1935, the McRae family bought the mill. They used it as a store for their grocery business. In the early 1960s, Ken McRae buried the old boiler outside the mill's eastern wall. Both the McRaes and Coopers used the well to get rid of rubbish, so it was full by 1960.

The Mill Today

The Uralla Historical Society bought the mill in 1979. They started restoring it with money from the Heritage Council of NSW. Today, the mill is a museum run by the Society. It helps people learn about the area's history.

The Chaff Shed's Journey

The Chaff Shed was built next to McCrossin's Flour Mill in 1881. It was used for cutting chaff (chopped hay for animal feed). Power came from the mill through a wooden shaft.

• 1940 - 1979: The McCrae's Hardware Shop used it for storage. It was known as the "Wireshed."
• 1979: The Uralla Historical Society bought it.
• 1982-1984: The society worked to make it stable and square again.

What McCrossins Mill Looks Like

The Main Mill Building

The mill building has three floors and is made of brick. It faces Salisbury Street. A verandah (a covered porch) runs along the front of the building for about 18 meters (59 feet). It shelters a central double door. There are two windows on each side of the door. On the upper floors, five windows are lined up neatly.

The ground floor on the north, west, and south sides is made of rough white granite blocks. Smaller pieces fill in the gaps. The front of the building has more even blocks. The upper floors are made of red brick. The outer walls and some inner walls are built in a pattern called English bond. This means one row of bricks is laid lengthwise, then the next row is laid with the ends facing out.

On the inside back wall of the first and second floors, the bricks are laid in a simple Colonial bond style. This usually has three rows of bricks laid lengthwise, followed by one row laid with the ends facing out. Here, up to five rows of lengthwise bricks were laid between the end-facing rows.

At the back of the building, there are windows on the first floor. On the ground floor, some windows and doors were added to the original structure.

In the southeast corner of the eastern wall, a door opens into the original engine room. This room is about 12 meters (39 feet) wide. Another door on the first floor leads into the larger milling area. Halfway along the wall between the engine and milling rooms is a special box. This box was used to transfer power between the two areas.

Two steep stairs in the milling room lead to the second and third floors. These floors are held up by four brick piers (strong columns). These piers divide the front part of the milling area from the back. They go all the way up through the second and third floors to support the roof. The hipped roof (a roof that slopes down on all sides) was first covered with wooden shingles. Later, it was replaced with corrugated iron.

Between the ground and first floors, there is a trap door. There are also small chutes. These were used to move grain and flour between the different floors.

The Chaff Shed

The Chaff Shed is about 196 square meters (2,110 square feet) in size. It sits between McCrossin's Mill and McCrossin's Stables/Store. The first floor and the steeply sloped roof are supported by 21 huge, round poles. These poles are about 300 millimeters (12 inches) thick. The roof and walls are now made of corrugated iron. There is a loading area on the first floor.

Condition and Changes

The mill is in fair physical condition. Its location and basic structure are important. Over time, some changes have been made:

• Around 1910: Windows were put into the front wall.
• 1975: A dovecot (a small house for pigeons) was removed.
• 1982-1984: The ground floor was taken out. Rotted poles were replaced or fixed.

Why McCrossins Mill is Important

McCrossins Mill is important to the history of New South Wales. It shows how early settlers tried to figure out the best ways to farm in different parts of the state. Even though growing wheat and making flour didn't work out in this area, the mill reminds us of those early attempts.

The mill also shows how industries grew during the gold rush. It was built to supply flour to the gold miners.

McCrossins Mill was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on April 2, 1999, for several reasons:

• It has a strong connection to important people or groups in New South Wales history.

The McCrossin family were pioneers in Uralla. They were involved in flour milling, retail, and hotels.

• It shows great design or technical skill in New South Wales.

It's very unusual to find such a large rural building right in the middle of a village.

• It has a strong connection with a community or cultural group for social or cultural reasons.

The Chaff Shed now has a very special connection with the Uralla Historical Society.

• It is a rare or uncommon part of New South Wales's cultural or natural history.

Again, having such a big rural building in a village area is quite rare.