Monument record MHG45046 - Possible Corn-Drying Kiln, Cnoc A'Mhuilinn

NH56SW 26 5168 6219
Natural knoll N of river is named Cnoc a' Mhuillinn, 'hill of the mill' and contains evidence of milling. The hill has been shaped by the river and a meander (presently dry) on its N side.
Presumably during much of the year it is a virtual island. (The 1:10560 OS survey of 1875-6 shows it as an island.) The hill consists of two parts, a rounded upper area on W and a lower level area to E. The mill lade approaches hill from S and runs along side level E end. At its widest point the lade is 3.25m wide by 1.25m deep. It has been constructed by throwing up a bank of earth and stone which varies between 1.5 - 2.5m in width and stands up to 2m high. At a point near extreme SE tip of hill lade bank widens to 4.5m. If this mill was a horizontal mill, and this seems very likely, then it was here that mill itself spanned lade.
In addition to lade, there is a small circular structure on upper western part of hill. It is 7m diameter with walls 2m thick and 1m high. It has no apparent entrance and its interior is lower than the surrounding ground surface outside. It does not appear to be a hut circle and in view of its location it is tentatively interpreted as a grain drying kiln.
Visited June 1979 Info from S T Driscoll & S M Foster (Mss, 3-4, No. 15) 1989.