MILLS & PUBLIC WASH HOUSES
1.
MILLS.
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Mills were in the past key-buildings in our cantons
because they touched the very root of supporting economies
and were omnipresent in the landscape, on hills, along
rivers and in the channels, where water would drive
the millstones.
In 1819 for instance, 934 mills worked in Gers and
were as many supports to the country economic activity:
flour making, wood sawing, ice or paper making, each
one playing an essential role.
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The windmills in Gascony are made up of three
parts:
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• the body of the building, in the shape of
a cylinder
or slightly curved, built with sandstone
or flat bricks
• the pivot-mounted horizontal milling mechanism
• the fixed and vertical milling mechanism.
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The first windmills, moved by wind, disappeared
for water mills, more cost-effective, at the protoindustrial
era.
The transmission of hydraulic force was initially
done thanks to wheel, generally with buckets, less often
with paddles. From 1870, because of a growing need for power,
the changeover to turbines was almost general.
Today, even if for many owners, water has
not been running any more since long ago and even if this
architectural form fell in disuse, a significant movement
can be noticed in favour of their preservation.
Back to their first function, transformed
into main or secondary homes, they are a significant element
of our region heritage rehabilitation.
2.
PUBLIC WASH HOUSES.
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From living places, public wash houses became memory
places: those buildings remind us that, before the
washing-machine era, public wash houses were very
busy places, and hence their name: "gossip hotels".
Built in such a way that water runs through them,
wash houses are most of the times located near a spring
or a water stream.
There are many different types: basins may be round,
rectangular, octagonal, oval, and the roofs are often
integrated into the regional style.
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In some places, they look like small rustic
temples, with a round or rectangular roof supported by massive
pillars or columns.
As an integral part of our heritage, towns and villages
in Gers make sure public wash houses are maintained and
their architecture is protected.
Fairs
and events
Comité Départemental
du Tourisme et des Loisirs
