Martry Mill was delighted to take part in this year's Mills and Millers of Ireland Summer Event on the 14th and 15th of June, which took us to mills, museums, and castles around County Meath.

Every year The Mills and Millers of Ireland host a summer event. This year’s summer event took place on the 14th and 15th of June taking in mills, museums, and castles around County Meath. Martry Mill were delighted to be included in the itinerary, with James and Nuala attending all of the events.

The weekend started with a visit to Bective Mill where we were given an extensive tour of Bective Abbey followed by a lecture by archaeologist Geraldine Stout. From there we went to lunch and a baking demonstration by George Heise in the Martry Restaurant, which we all took useful tips from. Next on the agenda was a visit to Martry Mill where Joan Mullen delivered an insightful talk about her project, the ‘Field Names of Meath’.  Lucy O’Reilly, local Kells tour guide, brought us around Kells most historic locations including St. Colmcille’s House, the High Crosses, the Spire of Lloyd and to view a copy of The Book of Kells. The tour was excellent with Lucy explaining each of the points in great detail, fully immersing us in the history of Kells. To bring our fantastic first day to a close we all gathered in The Headfort Arms Hotel for dinner. All of the food for the night was locally produced within a 30km radius of Kells as part of the Boyne Food Trail, and was thoroughly enjoyed by all!

On Sunday, our day began with a tour of Slane Castle. The tour began with a history of the castle, followed by the obligatory group photo on the steps and we then proceeded into the front hall where learnt about the meaning behind the crest, the famous fire and a history of the family. It was a great experience to see the grandeur of the inside of the castle and hear about its rich history. From Slane Castle we continued on to the Moynalty Steam Threshing Museum where we got to see a range of threshing machinery from years gone by. Our final stop on the Mills and Millers of Ireland 2014 Summer Event was Annesbrook Mill, also in Moynalty, where we were given a tour of the mill and insight into work currently being carried out there.