Attic Opening

An opening in the attic draws a column of light through the upper level of Mittagong Maltings, catching dust in suspension above exposed timber beams and the remnants of industrial fittings left behind when the works closed. The surfaces carry decades of deterioration: timber darkened and split, light diffusing through what was once a sealed and working floor space. The Maltings were constructed from 1898 by Stuart Brothers of Sydney, using bricks sourced from local Mittagong brickworks. Malthouse 1 was completed in August 1899 and began production immediately under manager George Lintott. The site sits on land acquired from the Oaklands Estate, northeast of Mittagong railway station, chosen for its access to rail transport, the Nattai Creek water supply, and the atmospheric conditions required by the floor malting process. Tooth and Co purchased the site in 1905, adding Malthouse 2 in 1906 and 1907, a grain store in 1913, and Malthouse 3 in 1916. At its peak in the early 1940s, the works produced approximately 200,000 bushels of malted barley annually, employing an average of 27 men across up to four shifts. The traditional floor malting method, which required the specialised expertise of the head maltster rather than mechanised control, was used throughout the complex's entire 81-year operational life. A fire in August 1942, reported by the Sydney Morning Herald as "the biggest fire in the history of Mittagong," damaged Malthouses 1 and 2. A further fire in 1969 gutted Malthouse 1 permanently. Production across the complex ceased in 1980 when Tooth and Co cited financial difficulties and the availability of subcontracted malting services. Mittagong Maltings is the only remaining example of a traditional maltings manufacturing facility in Australia. This photograph, made in 2014, records what the attic held in the years before a $68.1 million redevelopment was approved in 2022: light, timber, dust, and the particular quiet of a building that once ran without interruption.