St Monans Windmill
St Monans Windmill is the most tangible reminder of salt production,
an industry that for centuries blighted the environment of coastal communities right along both shores of the Firth of Forth. Salt extraction remains mostly in a series of placenames alongside the River Forth involving "pan" or "pans". The most well known of these is Prestonpans, where industrial salt extraction continued until as recently as 1959. Salt production at St Monans is due to Sir John Anstruther, who became the local laird in 1753 and 1771 he and his business partner, Robert Fall, established the Newark Coal and Salt Company. Coal was extracted from land immediately to the north of the windmill from a mine whose site is now occupied by Coal Farm. The salt pans were housed in nine buildings on the raised beach below the windmill, whose locations can still be seen today. The role of the windmill was to provide the power to pump sea water from tidally-fed reservoirs cut into the rocks offshore into the salt pans. Production went on round the clock and at the height of operations the salt pans employed 20 men, while the colliery serving it employed a further 36 men. More information at
www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/stmonans/windmill/index.html
St Monans Windmill
St Monans Windmill is the most tangible reminder of salt production,
an industry that for centuries blighted the environment of coastal communities right along both shores of the Firth of Forth. Salt extraction remains mostly in a series of placenames alongside the River Forth involving "pan" or "pans". The most well known of these is Prestonpans, where industrial salt extraction continued until as recently as 1959. Salt production at St Monans is due to Sir John Anstruther, who became the local laird in 1753 and 1771 he and his business partner, Robert Fall, established the Newark Coal and Salt Company. Coal was extracted from land immediately to the north of the windmill from a mine whose site is now occupied by Coal Farm. The salt pans were housed in nine buildings on the raised beach below the windmill, whose locations can still be seen today. The role of the windmill was to provide the power to pump sea water from tidally-fed reservoirs cut into the rocks offshore into the salt pans. Production went on round the clock and at the height of operations the salt pans employed 20 men, while the colliery serving it employed a further 36 men. More information at
www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/stmonans/windmill/index.html