A Trip to Irwell Vale and Quarry Bank Mill

A couple of weeks ago I took a trip to Irwell Vale, it is a small village on the outskirts of Manchester which my family has connections to. During the Industrial Revolution my ancestors the 'Aitkens' owned the village as well as the cotton mill located within it.

A street within the village name after my ancestors

In this photo you can just see the edge of the mill, which partially still remains to this day.

After a quick stop off in Irwell Vale, I then went onto Quarry Bank Mill. I have visited the mill a few times before but only as a child, therefore it had been quite a while since my last visit. However, I have very fond memories of the place, in particular the old school building (unfortunately that was closed today as I arrived a little late.) 

The exterior of Quarry Bank Mill

I spent a good few hours wandering round the Museum housed within the old mill, and luckily, because I arrived quite late in the day the place was very quiet, meaning I could go at a more leisurely pace, taking my time reading and photographing the exhibits. Here are a few details that caught my eye:

As I first entered the Mill I was drawn to these beautiful woodcut illustrations by Barbara Greg that were on display as part of the 'Drawn Out of Love' exhibition.

                                                   
                                                      One of the many looms on display

Fabric samples

 One of the aspects of the museum that I found myself most intrigued by were the more personal elements, such as belongings and letters.

I also really liked these trade union posters, which although not original (they were created for the Channel 4 series 'The Mill' which was filmed at Quarry Bank) were still eye catching for their colour and bold use of text.

The office

These were metals cups which were used by the workers to collect their wages in

 Perhaps my favourite section of the Mill was one of the most unassuming, it was a cabinet containing some of the medicines and remedies that were used to treat the workers. Some of them fairly recognisable, and other more unusual and unorthodox, I found myself drawn to the beautiful packaging and bottles, as well as the stories about their use.

Little has changed. This is one of the main rooms of the Mill, the machines are still running and give a frighting impression of the claustrophobic, deafening and dangerous environment the Mill would have been for its workers.