Pettigo - The Mill

The Mill

Pettigo Mill was built by the Leslie family who owned the Pettigo Estate. The Leslie family were originally from Monaghan town. Pettigo Mill was first on the map of Pettigo dated 1767, but probably is much older. The Mill got its power from the Termon river. It was described as a cloth mill i.e. woolen cloth, but probably also ground oats and other grains. During the famine, maize or Indian meal as it was called was ground in the Pettigo Mill. This was then sent to the poor through the port of Ballyshannon in the year 1845/1846. After the arrival of the railway in Pettigo, which opened in 1860, Pettigo Mill was a saw mill as well as a grain mill. Timber for all the usual purposes was produced but the main product that was made was egg boxes which held twelve eggs. Eggs were sent by train to the cities of Belfast and Dublin or onto England and Scotland. Egg boxes were in great demand as many people depended on their egg money to buy their groceries in the local shops.