Fancroft Mill House

Fancroft Mill is located on a tributary of the Little Brosna River, part of the Shannon system, just north of the town of Roscrea; thus the property straddles the boundary between Counties Offaly and Tipperary. The complex of structures at Fancroft Mill was begun in the late 1700s by the Pim family, Quakers from the community in nearby Mountmellick. The mill was re-equipped and extended from 1883 onwards.

The final addition was of a section which now houses the Mill Tea Rooms and lecture room. The Sweeny family, who bought the house at the turn of the millennium, rescued it from the dereliction of the previous 60 years and supervised its award-winning restoration as a working mill. A new set of millstones was installed 10 years ago, and white and brown flour, as well as semolina, can be produced. Meanwhile the previous owner, garden designer Angela Jupe, created beautiful gardens using stone from some of the old ruins. The main dwelling house dates from about the 1820s, and is simple and gracious, in Quaker style.