Mill site collage (IMAGE)

PNAS Nexus

Mill site collage

Caption

Many water-powered mills did not require very large falls of water to generate power, such as famously seen at (A) New Lanark on the Falls of Clyde (River Clyde, Lanarkshire). River meanders were creatively engineered, and the fall (and thus power) could be maximized by amplifying bedrock ledges exposed in the north of Britain. (B) Burrs Mill (River Irwell, Lancashire), a late 18th century cotton spinning mill, utilized upstream river meanders and a weir built across a natural waterfall formed by post-glacial river incision; (C) The Pollok House sawmill weir (River Cart, Renfrewshire) similarly amplified a bedrock ledge formed by subhorizontal sedimentary rocks exposed in the river; and (D) the fall across a resistant dolerite sill at Linn Falls (River Cart, Renfrewshire) powered at least two mills directly on the falls.

Credit

Tara N Jonell

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