Enjoying retirement
In The Red Rose County
An amazing place, still investing in new machines in the 1970s, and a unique survivor by virtue of its steam engine. At the time of our visit the steam engine was awaiting a broken part being mended, so electricity powered what we saw working, but this in no way detracted from our experience. Before we even entered the mill I was surprised to learn that it had been founded as a workers' co-operative with £20,000 capital and became the largest mill in the area. According to Richard our guide co-operative manufacturing ventures were quite common...this warrants further investigation. Recently a brick had fallen from the chimney. A £200k bill was then involved what with Health and Safety etc etc. Expensive but I do hope Lancashire C C always value and continue to preserve the jewel they have here. Our guide was Richard, a man who had worked at nearly all the jobs in a mill early in his life, and what an excellent guide he was - patient, humorous, and crammed full of knowledge and stories. When 'Peterloo' was filmed here he was one of the extras. Richard started at square one, what they made here (I should say made and make because they still do) - calico or grey cloth. We then walked through the historical development of mills and the Lancashire cotton industry - here was the basic Lancashire loom before its development into a more sophisticated piece of machinery. Here Richard was demonstrating the laborious process involving working a loom by treadle and two operators throwing the shuttle from side to side. He was also showing the dexterity involved in mending the inevitable breaks, and dealing with other problems. As small improvements were made to the machines the more powerful they became and the greater the output and variety of goods that could be made easily. This machine shows the warp being held at tension by weights at the front of the machine which could be altered depending on conditions. Semi-automated machines enabled patterns to be made more easily.... But it was the development of the punched card system by Jacquard that really enabled the cotton industry to take off, and this itself led almost directly to Babbage's 'Analytical Engine', the world's first computer. Great ideas and progress nearly always develops incrementally in this way. Next, to the boiler room where we examined the temporarily broken steam engine 'Peace' that drove everything in the factory, over 1000 looms and much else. The flywheel is 16 tons. Here you can see the drive shafts high above from which the belts attached to each loom were driven. Here the yarn is being assembled on spindles, ready for insertion in the shuttles. Richard's colleague started up one of the power looms for us. Ear protectors were available. The noise was substantial. With 1000 looms going, one can only imagine....well, I do remember, having been born in the corner shop 10 yards from a mill. When the doors were open, which was nearly all the time, the noise was terrific. The engineer was important of course in keeping everthing working. But the factory couldn't stop for him, if a belt broke he had to mend it and throw it back on to the moving gears. Next, to the amazing sight of the 300 looms still preserved in working order. The weaving shed here was used in several films including BBC's 'A Christmas Carol', 'North and South', 'Life On Mars', 'The King's Speech', and more. Although this mill was a co-operative, the rules were no less harsh than anywhere else, and fines were frequent. I particularly loved this collection of spindles. I retrieved spindles from under the working machines sometimes at the Preston Mill. I didn't keep any from those days, so was glad to buy one here as a memento of childhood. Our last step was the boiler house....very impressive, and run by two engineers who are retiring soon, with no replacements on the horizon. At the front of the fire..........the 3 shovelfulls of coal and coke I was allowed to throw on. All in all, a wonderful visit. The mill was closed in 2016 by the Labour Council as part of cost-cutting. Re-started in 2018 and with extra funding one only has to hope and devoutly wish that it will be maintained as it is - a truly unique survivor. We bought several of the items that are still made here. I can't find them online, surely an opportunity missed?
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August 2023
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