1852
Former textile mill built
Kirkstile, Former Tower Mill was built about 1852 by Messrs William Elliot & Sons after an earlier mill on the site had been demolished.
Site overview
Kirkstile, Former Tower Mill stands beside the Slitrig Water at Hawick. Historic Environment Scotland records it as a Category A listed former textile mill of about 1852, built on a long splayed rectangular plan and carried across the Slitrig Water on a single segmental arch. The building retains its original waterwheel and later boiler frontage.
Map
Map markers and directions links are provided for location reference only and do not indicate public access or permission to enter a site.
No site photograph is currently available. Images will be added as field visits are carried out.
History
Kirkstile, Former Tower Mill is a former textile mill at Hawick in the Scottish Borders. The coordinate-matched Trove and Historic Environment Scotland records identify the building as Kirkstile, Former Tower Mill, also known as Murray Brothers. It was built about 1852 by Messrs William Elliot & Sons, hosiery manufacturers, after permission had been granted to demolish an earlier mill on the same site.
The building is carried across the Slitrig Water on a single segmental arch and retains its original waterwheel, which Historic Environment Scotland describes as the largest surviving waterwheel in a textile mill in southern Scotland. The waterwheel was supplemented by a Manchester boiler installed in 1876, and in 1900 the wheel became the first in Hawick to generate electricity. William Elliot & Sons remained owners until 1950.
The building was listed on 19 August 1977 and was comprehensively refurbished in 2006-7 for cultural and commercial use as part of the Heart of Hawick project. No evidence was identified that the coordinate-matched site was a windmill.
Timeline
1876
Boiler installed
A Manchester boiler was installed in 1876 to supplement the power provided by the waterwheel.
1900
Waterwheel generated electricity
The waterwheel at Kirkstile, Former Tower Mill became the first in Hawick to generate electricity in 1900.
1977
Listed building designation
Kirkstile, Former Tower Mill was listed at Category A on 19 August 1977.
2006–2007
Heart of Hawick refurbishment
The former mill was comprehensively refurbished in 2006-7 by Gray, Marshall & Associates to house cultural and commercial uses.
Sources and records
Historic Environment Scotland listed building record; Trove / Canmore place record; Ordnance Survey town plan; Scottish Borders Council information