Mill Lane / Mill Dam
Chalybeate Bath House
Since the late 1880s it has been a private residence and the pool has been filled in. In 1938 it was the scene of a murder.
The bath house was used by scholars from the Quaker School who would arrive at 6 in the morning to bathe. The girls got a towel each whilst the boys had to share. The natural chalybeate would leave a rusty scum on top of the water which needed scraping off before people could bathe.
Below: The Bath House around 1899/1911 when it was home to the Elland family. (Photo provided by Lisa Mitchell, descendent of the Elland family)
Below:
'My Eland ancestors outside Bath House before it became the 'murder house'. They lived there in the late 1800s to at least 1911.
For those interested in family history, the rather large seated lady is Eliza ELAND formerly HARRISON, the gent seated to the left is her husband William Johnson ELAND. The child on his knee is Agnes ENGLAND and, the child standing between them is Mabel BROWN. The rather despondent lady stood behind William is his daughter, Annie Elizabeth ELAND.'
By descendent Lisa Mitchell.
Mill Dam
Location is shown on the right of this 1900 map. You can also see the canal to the dam running along the bottom of where Mount Pleasant now stands and under Hillside road. The arched bridge can just be seen if you go down into Ackworth School field from the grassed area. The canal also ran from Hoyle Mill Dam near Fitzwilliam Country Park, Scholeys Bridge on Barnsley Road and Shepherd's Hill Bridge on Doncaster road to Mill Dam
These side by side maps show todays exact location of where the dam was, between Millers Croft and Millgate, with Mill Dam School (bottom of satellite image) boundary hedge following the southern line of the dam.
Early 19th Century engraving looking from Mill Dam, across Carr Bridge to Ackworth School.
