Dounby Click Mill - the Last of its Kind

Dounby Click Mill is the last surviving horizontal mill in Orkney and was built around 1825 AD. It is one of the simplest types of mill, where the paddles are on a horizontal axis, along with the millstones. Horizontal mills were usually found where the water supply was limited. They were associated with individual farms and could grind grain for just a few families. The upper millstone had a peg which would knock the grain spout to provide a steady trickle of grain out to the chute. This knock or ‘click’ is where the term ‘click mill’ derives. the ground meal was then collected in the meal box below the chute. Dounby Click Mill is under guardianship of Historic Scotland.