Derwent Valley Mills is a World Heritage Site along the River Derwent in Derbyshire, England, designated in December 2001. It is administered by the Derwent Valley Mills Partnership. The modern factory, or 'mill', system was born here in the 18th century to accommodate the new technology for spinning cotton developed by Richard Arkwright. With advancements in technology, it became possible to produce cotton continuously. The system was adopted throughout the valley, and later spread so that by 1788 there were over 200 Arkwright-type mills in Britain. Arkwright's inventions and system of organising labour was exported to Europe and the United States.
The Derwent is a river in Derbyshire, England. It is 50 miles (80 km) long and is a tributary of the River Trent, which it joins south of Derby. Throughout its course, the river mostly flows through the Peak District and its foothills.
Sir Richard Arkwright was an English inventor and a leading entrepreneur during the early Industrial Revolution. He is credited as the driving force behind the development of the spinning frame, known as the water frame after it was adapted to use water power; and he patented a rotary carding engine to convert raw cotton to 'cotton lap' prior to spinning. He was the first to develop factories housing both mechanised carding and spinning operations.
Jedediah Strutt or Jedidiah Strutt – as he spelled it – was a hosier and cotton spinner from Belper, England.
Cromford is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, England, in the valley of the River Derwent between Wirksworth and Matlock. It is 17 miles (27 km) north of Derby, 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Matlock and 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Matlock Bath. It is first mentioned in the 11th-century Domesday Book as Crumforde, a berewick of Wirksworth, and this remained the case throughout the Middle Ages. The population at the 2011 Census was 1,433. It is principally known for its historical connection with Richard Arkwright and the nearby Cromford Mill, which he built outside the village in 1771. Cromford is in the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system.
The water frame is a spinning frame that is powered by a water-wheel.
Textile manufacture during the British Industrial Revolution was centred in south Lancashire and the towns on both sides of the Pennines in the United Kingdom. The main drivers of the Industrial Revolution were textile manufacturing, iron founding, steam power, oil drilling, the discovery of electricity and its many industrial applications, the telegraph and many others. Railroads, steamboats, the telegraph and other innovations massively increased worker productivity and raised standards of living by greatly reducing time spent during travel, transportation and communications.
Samuel Oldknow (1756–1828) was an English cotton manufacturer.
John Kay was an English inventor best known for the development of the spinning frame in 1767, which marked an important stage in the development of textile manufacturing during the Industrial Revolution. Born in Warrington in Lancashire, England, Kay was at least the co-constructor of the first spinning frame, and was a claimant to having been its inventor. He is sometimes confused with the unrelated John Kay from Bury, Lancashire, who had invented the flying shuttle, a weaving machine, some thirty years earlier.
Cotton-spinning machinery is machines which process prepared cotton roving into workable yarn or thread. Such machinery can be dated back centuries. During the 18th and 19th centuries, as part of the Industrial Revolution cotton-spinning machinery was developed to bring mass production to the cotton industry. Cotton spinning machinery was installed in large factories, commonly known as cotton mills.
John Smedley Ltd is an English luxury clothing brand specialising in knitwear like polo shirts and sweaters for men and women. The company applies a “Made in England” tag to every garment made. John Smedley has remained a family business since 1784, and is now managed by the 8th generation of the Smedley family. Historically, four generations of men named John Smedley owned Lea Mills, near Matlock, Derbyshire. The most famous of these was John Smedley (1803–1874), who is considered the namesake of the brand. The John Smedley company sells clothing in over 30 countries; its largest export market is Japan. In the UK, John Smedley has concessions in branches of Flannels and Fenwick.
Belper North Mill, also known as Strutt's North Mill in Belper, is one of the Derwent Valley Mills, given UNESCO World Heritage Status in 2001.
Bentley Brook is a stream in Derbyshire, England. It rises on Matlock Moor, flowing south through Cuckoostone Dale, under the A632, into Lumsdale, gathering the valley's waters—notably from Knabhall Brook, out of Tansley, itself dammed and supporting large mills. In Lumsdale it enters a now disused mill pond or reservoir, then flows over a waterfall in the course of passing several historical mill ruins. Finally, it runs through control gates into the outside bend of a tight oxbow of the River Derwent, just beyond Hall Leys Park in Matlock. Although only about five miles in length, Bentley Brook is classed as a 'main river' by the Environment Agency.
Cromford Mill is the world's first water-powered cotton spinning mill, developed by Richard Arkwright in 1771 in Cromford, Derbyshire, England. The mill structure is classified as a Grade I listed building. It is now the centrepiece of the Derwent Valley Mills UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is a multi-use visitor centre with shops, galleries, restaurants and cafes.
Willersley Castle is a late 18th-century country mansion above the River Derwent at Cromford, Derbyshire, outside Peak District National Park. The castle has been a Grade II* listed building since April 2000.
Albert Edward Lawton was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Derbyshire between 1900 and 1910 and for Lancashire between 1912 and 1914. He captained the Derbyshire team between 1902 and 1905 and also played for London County and Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).
Shudehill Mill or Simpson's Mill was a very early cotton mill in Manchester city centre, England. It was built in 1782 by for Richard Arkwright and his partners and destroyed by fire in 1854. It was rebuilt and finally destroyed during the Manchester Blitz in 1940. One of Arkwright's larger mills, it was built three years before his patent lapsed. The mill had a 30 feet diameter water wheel and a Newcomen atmospheric engine was installed. Doubts remain as to why the engine was installed, whether it was a failed attempt to power a mill directly by steam or was modified to assist the wheel. It is possible that this engine, constructed by Hunt, could have been one of the 13 engines installed in Manchester mills by Joshua Wrigley. Water from the upper storage pond turned the water wheel to drive the mill. The steam engine recycled water from the lower storage pond to the upper storage pond. Three more Boulton and Watt engines were installed to power the increasing number of spindles.
The Textilfabrik Cromford in Ratingen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany was built in 1783 by Johann Gottfried Brügelmann. It was the first cotton spinning mill on the European mainland. Today it is an industrial museum specialising in textile history.
Lumsdale Valley is a steep-sided wooded gorge in the Peak District near Matlock, Derbyshire, in England. It is the location of a series of historic water-powered mills.
