Barry,
As Richard Smith says, the Octagon Mill flue was an early attempt at
anything so big/truly heroic (anywhere). The flues at Langley Mill in
Northumberland are of a similar age and also quite large. Remember
too that the mill had six hearths, so they were dealing with a lot of
fume/flue gas. I know Clough says four hearths - he was wrong - as
is his proposed internal layout, but do not ask me how everything fit in
there, because I do not know either.
Another thing to remember is that the mill was of such grand
dimensions, they would hardly use a small flue and lose the effect.
The Smelt Mill Level is much later than the Octagon Mill. I suggest
that you look for traces of the goit, or outfall, from the waterwheel
around 25 to 30 feet below the platform on which the mill stood.
I am glad that you are considering taking time to look at the flue. I'm
sure that it has much to tell us. For example, was there ever a
chimney much lower down the hill than the two that we know about
after 1850? They, of course, were serving the New Mill by then.
Happy measuring.
Regards
Mike
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Mike Gill
President and Recorder of the NORTHERN MINE RESEARCH SOCIETY
Britain's foremost mining history society at:-
http://www.exeter.ac.uk/~RBurt/MinHistNet/NMRS.html
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