 Stott Park Bobbin Mill
Situated on the western edge of Lake Windermere, Stott Park Bobbin Mill survives
as a unique monument to a lost lakeland industry. Built in 1835, and
in continuous use until 1971, it remains today largely unchanged throughout
its 125 year history. The bobbin industry evolved during the Industrial
Revolution as the Lancashire textile mills required more and more cotton
bobbins and reels for the spinning and weaving machines. Stott Park,
like many other mills that grew up, produced a large range of other
timber items from drainpipe spout supports to pick axe handles and hammer
shafts to file handles. Timber used for these items was mainly Birch,
Sycamore and Ash which can be found in abundance in the Lake District.
Stott Park Bobbin Mill was built by John Harrison, a major estate owner in the area, although
he and his successors never actually ran the mill but preferred to lease
to local tenants. The most significant of Harrison's tenants were the
Coward family, who leased the mill from 1860 and, in 1915, they finally
purchased it outright. When the mill closed in 1971 it was one of the
last in the Lake District to do so.
The growth of this traditional
lakeland industry was predominantly due to two factors: an abundance
of raw material available for coppicing, and the numerous fast-flowing
streams that could provide the power needed to drive the waterwheel.
Each individual turning machine in the mill was driven by a belt running
off a main 'line' shaft, connected to the waterwheel, and this arrangement
continued even when the waterwheel was replaced by steam turbines in
1858. These steam turbines were then superseded by electric motors in 1941.
The main line shaft, and the constant flapping of the diagonal drive belts, made
the mill a noisy and often dangerous place to be, and still leaves a lasting
impression on visitors today. If long days and dangerous machinery were
not enough, the health of the bobbin turners was further endangered by
the choking dust that the mills produced, and respiratory problems were commonplace.
For anyone interested in our industrial heritage, a visit to the Lake District should
definitely include a stop at the Stott Park Bobbin Mill which provides
a real insight to an industry that, I must admit, I never realised existed.
Expert guides, many of whom worked the mill before the advent of plastic
forced its closure, provide lively and amusing demonstrations with commentary. |
