Stainsby Mill is the working Victorian watermill of the Hardwick Estate at Doe Lea, near Chesterfield, and a mill here has supplied the estate and local area with flour since the late 1500s. The present building was rebuilt in 1849 and 1850 by the 6th Duke of Devonshire to make white flour, and a 1990s restoration to his designs has the wooden works turning again and the millstone of rare French Burr stone producing a fine white flour. Volunteers explain how the waterwheel drives the cogs and gears, and reviewers recommend a tour with one of the informative guides, with the mill a natural stop before Hardwick Hall. The first floor is reached by steep stairs, the grounds have steep slopes, and only assistance dogs are admitted. Parking is free but limited, on the roadside down a lane with a short walk to the mill; the nearest refreshments and accessible toilet are at the Hardwick Park Centre.
