History of mills in the spotlight

WELL-KNOWN TO the people of Auchterarder, Hally’s Mills were the subject of the first talk of the year to theAuchterarder and District Histor y Association.

Appropriately, the talk was given by Richard Hally, a direct descendant of William Hally, who in 1863 opened the first mill in Auchterarder.

Thanks to the Industrial Revolution, by 1869 he had 150 steam-powered looms working, and in 1872 he opened another mill at Ruthven Vale, where the water supply was better, and one at Dallearie in Crieff.

By 1892, the business extended to 540 looms, producing 80,000 yards of cloth per week for shirting, with offices in Glasgow and London.

An imaginative benefactor, he helped with the construction of the Aytoun Hall, where the talk was held.

The Hally family sells men’s and ladies wear from a building in the town built byWilliam Hally in the 1860s.

The n ex t talk is Cromwell, Conflict and Controversy by Dr James Grant on February 15 at 7.30pm in the Aytoun Hall.