'Tawny coloured stone'

"The blue slated roofs contrast with the tawny colour of the stone walls".

An advert dated 1900-03 refers to the colour of stone that is so characteristic of the Mills. It says a lot about environmental policy of the time, that in just 30 years since its construction the stone must have already achieved todays colour from pollution.

Tower Mill is currently under restoration, clad in scaffold and with cleaned stonework it has a whole new character emerging, a contrast to the adjacent Genappe Mill, still very much 'Tawny' coloured.

The contrast in character is very interesting as it highlights what this project is about. Its the character that has evolved over time that is being captured before its gone. Once restoration takes place, a structure takes on a whole new character and enters a new phase of it's life.

Tower Mill already offers an exciting glimpse of what a restored Dalton Mills might be like. To preserve, in some way, what is there now and display this in the context of its restored environment is an exciting prospect. A valuable study not only for Dalton Mills but potentially for the many other textile mills in the region.