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| Quarry Bank Mill (from the River Bollin side) |
Quarry Bank Mill at Styal in Cheshire is a cotton mill founded in the 1784 century by Samuel Greg. The mill, together with its gardens and Styal Country Park, is now in the care of the National Trust. The machinery in the mill was powered by a waterwheel. This was eventually replaced by steam engines but now a replacement of the original wheel is operational and is the most powerful in Europe delivering up to 100 HP. At weekends demonstrations of mill machinery used in spinning and weaving cotton are given by NT staff and volunteers. Below is a photo of water powered weaving looms in action. A visit is highly recommended.
Amazing piece of engineering. Is it fully functioning or just part of it as a tourist attraction?
ReplyDeleteMany of the machines in the mill are either fully restored to working order or have been relocated there from other cotton mills. The machines are operated for demonstration purposes to visitors and only small amounts of fabric are produced. For example, one can buy tea-towels made in the mill using these machines in the on-site shop. All the machines are still worked by water power, supplemented by steam power when the river flow in the Bollin is very low.
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