The Corn mill was built in 1852 and came from the townland of Straid, which is located about three miles to the south west of Ballymena in County Antrim. It was dismantled and moved to the Folk Museum in the 1980s.
The mill was on a farm. The site also contained a substantial farmhouse, two houses for mill employees, a carpenter’s workshop, a forge, a large scutch mill and a small scutch mill.
A mill had been on the site since 1784 but the complex was rebuilt during the early 1850s. The rebuilding left the site much as it is presented today; a stone two storey, slated mill with a large water wheel outside. The mill buildings also included a cart shed, a stable, a kiln and two mill houses for employees.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s Straid mill and farm were owned and run by Alexander Weir. His father Robert had obtained the lease of Straid mill and farm from the O’ Neill estate in 1852.
The whole enterprise at Straid played an important role in the community both economic and social. A number of local people were employed in the mill.
By the 1930s the mill was operating at a greatly reduced level, due to competition from larger mills. The Straid corn mill finally ceased production after the war.
Look out for the water wheel which drives the mill. Note the layout and design of the building which facilitates the whole process of producing corn.