Description

Craigencalt is a substantial complex of agricultural buildings with a former threshing mill dating to the late-18th or early-19th century. Later in the 19th century, the site developed into a substantial farm. The core of the complex has developed around a courtyard open to the north and south. The threshing mill and barn forms the western side of the complex with a low rectangular-plan range to the north forming an L-plan range. There is a three-storey farmhouse with attached former dairy and home barn on the eastern side of the courtyard and an auxiliary building is located to the north. To the south of the main complex, and down a steep slope toward Kinghorn Loch, is a small building known as the Hermitage which is believed to be an earlier corn mill. To the southeast of the Hermitage, there is a long single-storey building formerly used as a byre situated close to the lochside.

Threshing Mill and associated ranges

The late-18th or early-19th century threshing mill and barn is a long rectangular-plan, pantiled building built into a slope which falls steeply to the south. To address the sloping site and to accommodate the wheel, the mill is two-storeys in height with a raised basement at its southern extent, which reduces to a low one-storey range at the north. There is a rectangular range which abuts at a right angle to form an L-plan range. This range was added to first, forming a U-plan, which was later infilled to create a large rectangular-plan block. The mill range is mostly built of whinstone rubble with contrasting ashlar quoins with areas of ashlar and brick infill. The openings are rectangular and have ashlar surrounds. The wheel and mill machinery do not survive but the mill race is intact.

Additional ranges were added (sometime after 1855) to the re-entrant angle of the L-plan range forming a rectangular-plan block, with a further range to the north. The courtyard elevation consists of the gables of the five ranges. All roofs are pantiled and all but the most northerly are piended. The ranges are rubble built with areas of brick infill, the openings are mostly altered with sliding, boarded-timber doors. The southernmost range is particularly wide. It has three brick segmental arched windows in its southern elevation and internally it has a three arch brick open arcade where it abuts the mill building. The third range retains cast iron supports for the roof and brick and concrete feeding troughs. The most northerly range has two altered openings in its north wall under a raised catslide roof. It is gabled with the courtyard gable set-back from the other ranges with a door in an altered opening.

Farmhouse, former dairy and home barn

On the east side on the courtyard is the farmhouse, former dairy building and home barn which make a rough L-plan complex of conjoined buildings. The farmhouse dates to 1891 but may contain fabric from earlier buildings that are mapped on this site in 1855. The courtyard elevation raises three storeys in height and has gablet dormers and is built of a random rubble. The primary (east) elevation has three bays with a single projecting bay with two-storey canted bay windows. It is two storeys in height over an exposed basement and is built in snecked rubble. The gables have flat skews with triangular headed skewputts. The roof is slated and most of the windows are replacements.

Attached to the north of the farmhouse, is a single-storey former dairy building, and to the south is building known as the home barn. Both are constructed in random rubble and have slated roofs.

The Hermitage and former byre

The building known as the hermitage is a small two-storey, two-bay, rectangular-plan structure on ground sloping to the south toward Kinghorn Loch. It is built of rubble masonry with a corrugated iron roof and with a segmental-headed arched cart opening to left of the south elevation. Externally, the east gable wall has a section of rectangular ashlar infill from ground level to around first floor height and may indicate repair associated with its potential former use as a mill. There is a long single storey, rubble range adjacent to the loch with corrugated-iron roof and variety of openings, which is believed to have been originally a byre.

Historical development

There has been a mill at Craigencalt since at least the late-16th century when in 1584 an instrument of sasine transferred the 'land of Craigincat, Damheid and the mill, mill-lands and acres of Craigincat', from John Boswell of Balto to his son, James. The location of this mill in not known, but a mill in the general location of the present Craigencalt on the north shore of Kinghorn Loch is depicted on a manuscript map of 1642 by James Gordon. A mill at Craigencalt is again documented in 1682 when it is mentioned in a survey by Robert Bratson of Kilrie, tacksman to Lady Margaret Leslie, Countess Dowager of Wemyss. The survey outlines the condition of the mill and other buildings within the barony of Craigencalt (Edwards, pp.7-10). The mill referred to may be the building now known as The Hermitage. Craigencalt mill continues to appear on maps throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.

In 1707 the lands of Raith, which included the mill, were sold to Robert Ferguson. In 1757 he commissioned a set of estate maps and the one for Craigencalt shows the buildings associated with the mill at the loch side (Edwards, pp.13-15). Sometime between 1790 and 1810 a threshing mill was built at Craigencalt, perhaps commissioned by William Young, owner of the Grange Distillery in Burntisland. Young later held the tenancy of Craigencalt and records show that he was the owner of the threshing mill machinery. His investment in the site was probably to ensure a supply of suitable grain for his distillery business. The existing lade at Craigencalt was diverted to come alongside the new threshing mill building (still seen at the present farm steading). A new mill pond brought water down to a large water wheel. The old corn mill then became a cot house for farm workers (Edwards, pp.17, 22-23).

Craigencalt and several other farms were bought by the Philp Educational Trust in 1829. Robert Philp was a local businessman who when he died in 1828 willed that that his assets be put into a Trust, and the capital and income used to provide for the educational needs of poor children. The minutes of the Philp Trust are detailed and give an insight into the running of the farms, including Craigencalt Mill. They indicate that, as well as milling, Craigencalt was a mixed farm at this time, but it didn't have a farmhouse as the tenant farmer lived elsewhere although there was accommodation for farm workers (Edwards, pp.31 and 41).

The mill remained in production until the Young family gave up the tenancy in 1863, after which the main activity at Craigencalt was mixed farming under a variety of tenants. In 1890 the farm was tenanted by John Craig of Argyll and it was at this time that the farmhouse was built. It was designed and perhaps built by the local firm of William Little and Son, Kirkcaldy, described as 'architects, builders, joiners, lathsplitters, sawmillers & c (Dictionary of Scottish Architects). In the 1891 census the address was given as Woodfield, Craiges Cult Farm and John Craig was living there with his wife Margaret and five adult children, all working at the farm. In 1893 John Craig built a road to his house from the public road, and an entrance to his house from the farm steading (Edwards, p.45). Craigencalt continued as a farm until 1989, after which it was developed as an environmental ecology centre.

The complex at Craigencalt is mapped in detail on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map of 1855, where it is labelled 'Craigencat Mill'. Although there were subsequent developments in the later 19th century the general plan form was established by this time. The map shows the buildings arranged around a courtyard in a U-shaped form with the threshing mill part of an L-shaped range forming the west and northwest side. To the northeast there are two parallel ranges, with another range forming the east side. This grouping resembles the present range in this location, suggesting that the farmhouse, dairy and home barn developed from this grouping of buildings. The building known as The Hermitage and the long range along the shore of the loch are also depicted. The Ordnance Survey Name Book for Fife and Kinross (1853-55) describes Craigencalt as 'a large farmstead situated on the north side of Kinghorn Loch, where the farm servants and Steward of the proprietor Robert Young, Colinswell, reside, there was formerly a Corn Mill here, from which it has derived its name'.

The 2nd Edition Ordnance Survey map of 1894 shows that the angle of the west range has been filled in with the latter ranges and the east range has coalesced into the form to be seen today with the farmhouse at its core. The map also shows the Hermitage as being unroofed at this time.

Statement of Interest

Craigencalt Farm, the former mill building, farmhouse, steading, The Hermitage and ancillary building meet the criteria of special architectural or historic interest for the following reasons:

• Craigencalt is documented as early as the late-16^th century when it was the site of a corn mill.
• Craigencalt is a substantial complex of agricultural buildings dating to the 18^th and 19^th century, with an earlier mill building. The exterior and interior largely survive in their 19th century form, adding to the special interest.
• The grouping illustrates the development of a mill site into a substantial 19th century farmstead. Associated documents add to our understanding of the evolution and transformation of the site.
• The building and the site have been subject to various alterations and additions but much of the mid to late-19^th century character and form remains evident.
• The setting is largely well-retained and informs our understanding of how the agricultural complex developed over time.

Architectural interest:

Design

Craigencalt is a notable grouping of agricultural buildings. The complex developed from the 16th century as the site of a mill. By the late 19th century, it was a substantial farm with a steading and former threshing mill. It survives largely in its late 19th century form.

The plan form of the buildings has been arranged to accommodate first the milling of corn, then threshing and then the development of the site as a substantial farm. Both the early corn mill and then the threshing mill required a water supply and were located to exploit plentiful water supplies and the falling ground to power mill machinery. The plan form of the threshing mill has been arranged to accommodate the threshing machine and the threshing process with areas for the separation of corn, chaff and straw.

The threshing mill, steading and farmhouse are arranged around a courtyard which is typical of this period and reflects the different functions of the spaces, with the farmhouse and dairy on one side, and the threshing mill and steading ranges on the other. The development of this plan, with the infilling of part of the courtyard with steading ranges, is likely to reflect the move away from threshing as a major activity on the site to focus on farming.

The farmhouse dates to 1891 and was designed by a local firm of architects, William Little and Son of Kirkcaldy. The house is typical of substantial houses of this period with details such as two-storey, canted bay windows on the front elevation. The construction of the farmhouse indicates the evolution of Craigencalt into a fairly typical farm of the period. Most of the windows are replacements but overall the building retains a significant amount of late 19th century fabric and the low level of later alterations contributes to the building's authenticity.

Setting

Craigencalt is located to the north of Kinghorn Loch, which it overlooks. The earliest part of the site, the old mill building, is situated just above the loch shore. The late-18th century threshing mill and 19th century steading and farmhouse complex are built on higher ground directly to the north. The mill buildings are located here to exploit plentiful water supplies and the falling ground to power mill machinery. The setting of the buildings, which includes the remains of a mill pond and mill cottages, therefore contributes to our understanding of its function or its historical context.

Much of the footprint of the complex was set out by the time it was surveyed for the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map of 1855. The major changes in plan form including the construction of the steading ranges and the farmhouse occurred before the site was mapped again in 1894. The changes indicate the historical development of the site from a mill to a farm.

Historic interest:

Age and rarity

19th century farmhouses and farm buildings are a common building type in Scotland, and they are not rare. There are a number of listed farmhouses in Fife. These tend to be either early examples (18th century or early 19th century) or be listed as part of a large agricultural complex, as is the case at Craigencalt. There are also a number of late 18th or early 19th century threshing mills with steadings listed, around 10 of these are described as having threshing machinery largely intact.

Craigencalt is of interest because it is documented as a site of a corn mill in the late-16th century, a function which continued until the construction of the threshing mill in the later 18th century/early 19th century diverted the water supply from the older corn mill. It is unusual to be able to document the origins of an agricultural complex to the late-16th century. The Hermitage, believed to be the older corn mill, may date to the 17th century when a survey documents repairs to a mill building at Craigencalt. A mill of this date is rare and adds to the special interest, as does the extensive documentation for the site up until the late-19th century.

Social historical interest

Social historical interest is the way a building contributes to our understanding of how people lived in the past, and how our social and economic history is shown in a building and/or in its setting.

Craigencalt has significant social historical interest as the site of a mill from at least the late-16th century, which then developed into a threshing mill and then a large farm. Together, the grouping illustrates the development of a mill site into a substantial 19th century farmstead. The site is well-documented through much of its history, and this adds greatly to our understanding of the evolution and transformation of the site.

These considerations add to the special social historical interest in listing terms.

Association with people or events of national importance

There is no association with a person or event of national importance.

Statutory address and listed building record revised in 2022. Previously listed as 'Craigencalt Farm Ecology Centre, Former Mill Building, Steading, The Hermitage and Ancillary Building'.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q77776874

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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