Bolton Union Mill, Bolton

Bolton Union Mill
	counts
Ring Frames path	40's counts
References

Bolton Union Mill was a

Tootals and Dewhurst Dent

in 1964. Production finished in 1967.

The building is still standing. It has 15,466 m² (166,470 sq ft) of floor space and was driven by a 1200 hp tandem compound J Musgrave engine with a 32 ft (9.8 m) flywheel with 28 ropes operated at 50rpm.

History

Bolton was a

textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution. It was a boomtown of the 19th century and at its zenith, in 1929, its 216 cotton mills and 26 bleaching and dying works made it one of the largest and most productive centres of cotton spinning

in the world.

No. 1 Mill Built was built in 1875, and No2 Mill was built in 1880. a further site was operated from 1884 by John Hebden and Son, Vernon Mills. The Bolton Union Spinning Company Co Ltd was constituted in 1874 and was operating the mills in 1900. Mill No3 was built in 1902–1905. It is not recorded when production stopped.[2]

The industry peaked in 1912 when it produced 8 billion yards of cloth. The Great War of 1914–18 halted the supply of raw cotton, and the British government encouraged its colonies to build mills to spin and weave cotton. The war over, Lancashire never regained its markets. The independent mills were struggling. The Bank of England set up the Lancashire Cotton Corporation in 1929 to attempt to rationalise and save the industry.^[3] Bolton Union Mill, Bolton was one of 104 mills bought by the LCC, and one of the 53 mills that survived through to 1950.

LCC received permission to re-open the mills in 1946 but in 1961 the mills were bought by Barlow & Jones and Mill No. 1 demolished. In 1976 the other mills were closed by

Tootals Ltd. In 1985 No. 1 Mill site was landscaped for use as playing fields and No2 Mill was used by Dewhurst Dent Holdings Ltd, G & R Dewhurst (CMT) Curtains Ltd, Dewhurst Printing Company.^[2]

The mill was to be demolished (2008) and replaced with apartments, because the council sees the mill as no longer reflecting the image of the surrounding area.[2] In 2016, it was still standing and in use.

Architecture

Power

Driven by 1200 hp tandem compound engine by John Musgrave & Sons, operating at 100psi. It had a 32-foot flywheel with 28 ropes, operated at 50rpm. The cylinders, 28"HP, 52"LP had a 6-foot stroke. The air pump was driven from the crosshead.^[4]

Owners

John Hebden and Son, Vernon Mills
The Bolton Union Spinning Company Co Ltd
Lancashire Cotton Corporation (1930s-1964)
Tootals
Dewhurst Dent

References

^ LCC 1951
^ ^a ^b ^c David Dixon. "Bolton Union Mills (union, vernon, hebden mills)". St Mark's School, Bolton site. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2009.
^ Dunkerley 2009
^ Roberts 1921

Bibliography

Dunkerley, Philip (2009). "Dunkerley-Tuson Family Website, The Regent Cotton Mill, Failsworth". Archived from the original on 12 February 2009. Retrieved 2009-01-09.
LCC (1951). The mills and organisation of the Lancashire Cotton Corporation Limited. Blackfriars House, Manchester: Lancashire Cotton Corporation Limited.
Roberts, A S (1921), "Arthur Robert's Engine List", Arthur Roberts Black Book., One guy from Barlick-Book Transcription, archived from the original on 23 July 2011, retrieved 2009-01-11

External links

[1] LCC 1951

[stmarks-2] David Dixon. "Bolton Union Mills (union, vernon, hebden mills)". St Mark's School, Bolton site. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2009.

[3] Dunkerley 2009

[R1921-4] Roberts 1921

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