A bimble round Burley 2: Greenholme Mill

Leaving the centre of Burley in Wharfedale, I had a wander down to the river. Just a short walk takes you out into fields, looking back to Burley/Ilkley Moor that rises behind the village. At that stage there was no sign of the raging fire that engulfed a large area of the moor later the same day. Such a shame. Someone was arrested; the news report didn't say if it was a wilful act or an accident, though I did read it may have been teenagers with a campfire. Silly, if it was. The habitat destruction is tragic; it takes some time for the plants and wildlife to recover.

For those of you that like maps, I plotted my little walk in green. It was less than 2 miles but a very pleasant amble. The walk began down a road called Iron Row (above), full of now-gentrified cottages. Originally 'one up, one down', they were built for millworkers in 1800 by the mill company.

At the end of Iron Row, some gateposts mark the former entrance to Greenholme Mill. 

A little further on, the path passes under the Burley bypass; Iron Row then continues down to the large complex of mill buildings. It was originally a cotton mill, built around 1800. It was taken over by Fison and Forster in 1850 and was converted to worsted (wool) production. That too ceased, and these days the site is home to a number of small businesses. I've read of plans to convert it to housing but I couldn't detect anything being done to progress that.

In its heyday, it must have been a prosperous operation.The lodge house is quite impressive. I couldn't get a picture of the big mill itself, as there were trees between the footpath and the building. Some rather elegant iron fencing remains.



The walk then becomes leafier, peaceful and more countrified, following the line of the goit, a canal-like waterway that brought water from the River Wharfe down to the mill to power the works. There is now a hydro-electric generating plant utilising the water.