Looking Back

to White Coppice from the old abandoned Millstones above the quarry. Lots of these can be found in millstone grit country here in Lancashire, Yorkshire and Derbyshire.  Millstone production, along with lead mining was one of the main medieval industries hereabouts.  Production is believed to have started as early as the 14th century, reaching its peak in the late 16th and 17th centuries. 

Traditionally the stones were quarried by individual stone masons, each making about 16 pairs per year up on the hillside near to where the stone was quarried.  They would then be transported down the hill and taken away by road.  The market  disappeared very suddenly mid-18th century when white bread became fashionable.  The gritstone of which the millstones were made turned flour a grey colour, whereas it was found that French millstones were capable of producing white flour. 
Dozens of millstones in production  couldn’t be sold and were abandoned where they were produced – up on the hills below the gritstone edges and here they stay for us to pose for pix as the mood takes us on our outings  : )