WELCOME TO THE WEBSITE OF
SION MILLS BUILDINGS PRESERVATION TRUST
                        CO. TYRONE, North West IRELAND                              

SION  MILLS - Historic Linen Mill & Model Village.  A Conservation Area on the border of West Tyrone & Co. Donegal, and on the main A5 North West Passage tourist route from Dublin to Derry & Donegal.

A 170 year old close-knit Community, founded by a family determined on fostering non-sectarianism.  The story of how two traditions, in equal numbers, have lived in harmony since 1835 - an example to others for a peaceful future.  To read more visit "About Sion Mills" above.

Sion Mills Buildings Preservation Trust was formed in 1999 to encourage and help bring about the preservation of the industrial heritage of the remarkable historic linen village of Sion Mills, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland, which was designated as a Conservation Area in 1976.   Sion Mills is on the Border of Northern Ireland and County Donegal, in an area of high unemployment, especially since the closure after 170 years of Herdmans flax-spinning Mill in 2004.  Thankfully the Herdman family, who founded the model village around the Mill in 1835, built exciting buildings in a beautiful environment.  There are 40 statutory listed buildings in the village as well as the legacy of the handsome Mill buildings (a magnificent monument to the Irish Linen Industry) awaiting restoration and regeneration.  And the River Mourne - spectacular and renowned for its salmon and sea trout - with its huge waterpower, created by the weir and large mill stream, harnessed to create hydro-electricity.  All of this unique heritage can be put to use  as a visitor attraction for the benefit of the people of the North West of Ireland.

There is also a fascinating story to tell of the Herdman family and the model village and community which they founded in Sion Mills in 1835.  We hope that you will enjoy this website and the history which should unfold as you explore it.  Please keep revisiting the site as we will be adding to it regularly from the large collection of archives we have in store.  With 1200 employees over a period of 170 years, there must be thousands of people all over the world with their roots in the North West of Ireland who have close connections with Sion Mills.  Visit our Sion Mills Forum - topic "Sion Mills family connections" (click on FORUMS at top of page).  We would like these people to know what a happy place this has always been to live and work, in a beautiful setting and with great care for the well-being of the millworkers and their families with most of their needs catered for. 

The Trust's work is for the benefit of the local and wider community of Strabane District (designated a deprived area) and the North-West of Ireland. The Trust, as a charitable, non-profit making organisation, can attract grant aid to help achieve the following aims, either as a funding partner or through the Trust’s own output: 

1. Assisting in bringing the significant Herdmans Mill buildings back into uses which will create employment and secure their future as heritage assets contributing to the local economy.      

2. Ensuring that the history and all aspects of Sion Mills’s cultural significance are understood and that this knowledge and understanding is recorded, preserved and interpreted for the present and future generations and for the benefit of the local and wider community, visitors and site users.

3. Through regeneration and a sense of pride in a unique heritage, raising local confidence and morale, which will be reflected in community well-being, private sector confidence and economic investment.

4. Helping to bring visitors to the area and increasing tourism in the North West by promoting the heritage within the Sion Mills Conservation Area, including:

• the model village with 40 listed buildings
• the historic flax-spinning Mill  
• the spectacular River Mourne and some of the best angling in Europe for salmon, sea trout and brown trout
• the impressive water-power system
• the story of 170 years of industrial heritage and a close-knit, non-sectarian community

 This Website has been funded by Strabane District Council to assist the Trust in achieving its aims. The Trust hopes it will:

• Increase awareness world-wide of the historical and architectural importance of Sion Mills
• Inform the general public and encourage and facilitate communication and public input
• Provide education on the history of Sion Mills and its place in the industrial heritage of Ireland
• Provide PR and marketing to encourage tourism, with links to similar heritage attractions
• Be a marketing tool for attracting tenants for the regenerated mill buildings
• Provide a Forum for discussion on aspects relevant to the Trust’s work, and on topical matters of interest or concern (including being a vehicle for any lobbying the Trust judges relevant)
• Assist those who are researching their ancestral roots and family history
• Promote the principles of good conservation within the Conservation Area and beyond
• Enable the distribution of Trust publications, photographs and other items of interest
• Help people to understand that Sion Mills’s social and built heritage can be the basis of a successful future economy for the area

Return to Top of Page