A millennium-old tradition at Martry Mill

Martry Mill on the River Blackwater between Kells and Navan, possibly Ireland's oldest mill location at almost 1,000 years in operation, is hosting an open day the weekend under the current miller, James Tallon Jnr, the fifth generation of his family to run the flour production facility.

The oldest record found of a mill at the site in Martry is from a land survey made in 1323. The survey refers to "a tumbledown old mill" which was owned by the Turpleton family at this time. Hugh de Turpleton was granted the Manor of Martry by King Edward ll (1307-1326). Following a dispute with the king, Hugh de Turpleton was executed in 1331. The ownership of the manor of Martry passed to the Darcy family at this time. The mill, which would have originally been made from wood, mud and thatch, was upgraded to a predominantly stone building towards the end of their time as owners - most likely late 1500s or early 1600s. This stone building encompasses the primary milling area of the current mill.

A record of Martry Mill dates back to the Civil Survey of 1654 where it was documented that a mill and twenty cabins stood on the estate of Martry in 1641.

Following various ownerships and tenancies, Martry Mill passed to the Tallon family in 1859. Thomas Tallon, great-grandfather of the present owner, was the first of the family to work in the mill. He leased the mill from the Tisdall family. Following on from the Wyndham Land Act, when it became possible for standing tenants to buy their holdings, second generation James Tallon bought the mill outright. A short-lived flax mill was connected to the older flour mill shortly thereafter. Most of the stone used for the extension was sourced directly from the river.

During the first and secnd World Wars, Martry Mill worked 24 hours a day, serving the counties of Meath and Cavan.

In 1978, the Boyne Drainage Scheme changed Martry Mill forever, and could have resulted in the end of a long history of work and production at this historic building.

A publicity campaign, supported by An Taisce, Navan Chamber of Commerce, national television, radio, the Meath Chronicle and the local community got underway to save the mill as a working concern. This resulted in the rebuilding of the weir and mill-race at the new level of the river bed, and the transmission of power from the newly lowered wheel to the mill machinery.

This scheme, undertaken by the Office of Public Works, meant that Martry Mill has continued to serve its local community into the 21st century, and the increase in demand for flour during the Covid-19 pandemic. James Tallon Snr, the fourth generation miller there, and his uncle Michael make an extensive renovation in the 1980s. The floors, ceilings, stairs and windows were repaired and replaced to future and flood proof the mill.

Current miller, James Tallon, says : "It is not just the history that encourages me to keep the mill wheel and mill stones turning at Martry Mill. The family history and old inscriptions of millers names and initials engraved into the walls, mostly by windows or outside as electric light is relatively new to the mill, do provide motivation. But the flour itself is the primary reason that mill is still operational today.

"The best flour is made using wholewheat. Wholewheat is rich in protein, fibre and minerals much more so than refined wheat. The great quality and cleanness of the wheat that Drummonds source for us is a key factor for us to enable us to make the best quality flour. We borrow a process from more modern times by using extraction fans to remove any remaining shell or dust from the wheat before grinding same to make flour. The grinding process itself is another key factor in making the most natural and flavorsome flour. The traditional method of slowgrinding the wheat using big stone millstones helps maintain more of the moisture and the natural minerals and vitamins in the flour along with more of the great flavor that you can taste in the bread that our flour makes for our customers."

James explains that their flour is 100 per cent Irish grown wholewheat.

"Brown/wholewheat flour like the name suggests uses the whole of the wheat. Wheat can be broken into three parts, the endosperm which is low in nutrition and high in starch, the bran which is high in fibre and vitamin B and the germ which is the nutrient powerhouse of wheat. It contains Vitamins E and B, healthy fats, antioxidants and minerals. White flour is made using only the endosperm hence brown wholewheat flour is much more nutritious and healthy. We don’t add any artificial nutrition or vitamins or any ingredients other than wheat. The great top quality wheat and traditional process help us to make the most flavoursome, natural and healthy flour possible for the making of brown bread and other baked goods."

James says that the process of bread making is very simple, as it is possible to mix the ingredients together in less than a minute and fill the kitchen with a lovely smell from the freshly baked bread.

"I do supply some hotels and bakeries but getting my product onto shop shelves around Meath is my top priority so all brown bread homebakers have the option to use my flour. Martry Mill flour is available at all the Supervalu and Fresh Today supermarkets in Meath as well as at a network of smaller local shops."

A decade ago, working with expert millwrights from Germany, the iconic waterwheel, sluice gate and some damaged internal machinery were restored to their former glory.

The mill is open for school tours, private tours and open days so people can see for themselves how an old traditional watermill works and to futher promote home baking.

"Mills are an important part of our history as they drove industry for more than 1,000 years up until the time electric power became available. There used to be thousands of mills all over the country, now there are less than a handful left so it is important to us to preserve this tradition," James explains.