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Quarry Bank Mill Road Styal Wilmslow Cheshire SK9 4LA Tel: 01625 527468 |
Quarry Bank Mill and Styal Estate with Styal Village is one of the most complete and least altered factory colonies of the Industrial Revolution. It is of outstanding national and international importance. Founded in 1784 by a young textile merchant, Samuel Greg, Quarry Bank Mill was one of the first generation of water-powered cotton spinning mills. Styal was chosen for a number of reasons, not least because of the suitable head of water provided by the River Bollin and its proximity to the Bridgewater Canal and thus Liverpool. The children brought to work in the Mill lived in the Apprentice House, now restored as part of the Museum. Between 1790 and 1847, when the system ceased, around 1,000 children were apprenticed to live and work at Styal. As the Greg enterprise flourished, the Mill itself was extended and a working community established at Styal. This included two chapels, a school and a shop as well as cottages and 'terraced' housing. By the 1830's Samuel Greg & Co. was one of the largest cotton manufacturing businesses in Britain with four other mills as well as Quarry Bank. The site has four unique features:
Its Original Buildings: The Mill is one of the finest and most impressive industrial brick buildings of its day to survive. Together with Styal Village, it represents an unrivalled example of an early factory colony.
An Extensive Archive: A varied collection of objects, pictures and documents provide evidence about the life and work of the Greg family and their workforce.
A Living Museum: Quarry Bank Mill is still a working Cotton Mill producing over 9,000m (10,000 yards) of cloth each year. Visitors can see, hear and smell 19th Century textile machines working and meet skilled Millworkers with years of experience of working in the cotton industry.
The Great Iron Waterwheel and two Steam Engines: Quarry Bank Mill and Styal Estate now offers an unique opportunity to see the two major sources of power available during the Industrial Revolution, working in an original context. The most powerful working waterwheel in Britain illustrates how power can be harnessed to drive machinery. A Boulton and Watt type beam engine c.1830 and an 1880's Horizontal Engine powered by live steam bring the past to life.
The Mill and Styal Estate are owned by the National Trust. Holder of the Sandford Award for Heritage Education, the Museum has also won numerous tourist and customer care awards. It is recognised as one of the premier sites for education in the UK.
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