Davies o'the Mill and Dugald Semple, Beith
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- Опубликовано: 9 сен 2024
- Narrated video - Davies o'the Mill was probably once a lint or flax mill and later became a dwelling belonging to Dugald Semple the pioneering vegetarian and sustainability campaigner. Dugald lived in a tent and travelled in a horse drawn caravan, making a living from lecturing and writing books. See Wikipedia for an article describing his life.
Just came across this video clip. We lived in the Mill O' Beith cottages until 1996 when we moved to North Carolina. Many a time we walked up to Davies O' Mill. It was in better condition than this video; the upstairs was still intact. When we moved to our home Mrs Rose used to live at Davis.
Very good to hear from you. Dr Richard Sutcliffe from Edinburgh University is writing a book about Dugald Semple and one unanswered question that remained was who was the last occupant at Davies o'Mill and when was it abandoned? We guessed that the mill became unsafe after the quarry expanded. Any information you have about Davies and its history would be greatly appreciated.
I have written an article about Dugald which you can read on Wikipedia.
We bought the Mill O’Beith April 1979. We moved to Paris ion June 1978 and moved back during the summer of 1982. We first moved to the Mill O’Beith the Davis property was owned by Mrs Rowe. She seemed elderly to us as we were in our twenties. My wife had tea and shortbread with Mrs Rowe recalling it was very dark on the inside. The house was intact at that time (1979) with that lovely garden. During our time in Paris Mrs Rowe had passed away. We think it was her nephew who inherited the property. This was eventually sold to the quarry; some of the local farmers (especially the Reid’s) were upset as they would have purchased or at least considered an offer. Most summer evenings my son and I would explore Mill O’Davies. Gradually nature took over and local worthies used to use the upstairs to doss down until the floor become unsafe. Each time we go back to Scotland my son and I walk up the lane to the see Mrs Rowe’s house. The lane is now really over grown. I am sure that Beith Solicitors Stewart Osborne could give you details of occupancy; they handled the purchase and sale of our house and I think they also handled Mrs Rowe’s. Hope this helps Our stay at the Mill was a very happy time and our son still wonders why we sold it; to him it was perfection!
Yes, I read that. Strange to live so close to a place that had that history of which we had no knowledge.
Thanks Harry for the details - I will pass them on. It is still a delightful area and we have enjoyed researching Dugald and the area. The Warlock Craigie Waterfall is a great sight.
very interesting roger
strangeley there was a planning app lodged for replacement of house and outbuilding in 2004
Thanks - That's very surprising as you say given the proximity of the quarry
Amazing
A shame that it has become a ruin
Thank you for an excellent video. Dugald Semple was ahead of his time. As a Scottish Vegan I can relate to his vision of a peaceful world through the power of Veganism.
Glad that you enjoyed it. I also have an article on Wikipedia about Dugald.