Compstall Mills
31/03/24
31/03/24
(This is my first report so please let me know if there is anything i need to change)
Compstall mills are a large complex of former cotton spinning mills located just east of Stockport.
The History
In 1817, George Andrew purchased 600 acres of land in Compstall to build the spinning mill and houses. In 1819 he built a bridge over the river Etherow and commenced building his mill and a village to house his 600 workers. By 1820 his first factory building was completed as his workforce expanded. George Andrew and his sons built a village and houses which by 1834 housed its population of 1,700. In 1838 the reserviors were constructed. And by its peak, there were some 2,000 workers at the mill.
The original entrance of the mill taken sometime during its peak from Andrew street. The original gatehouse on the right still remains to this day but the five-storey building in the center of the picture located south of Scotland mill has long been demolished.
A map of the development of the site from 1823-1907
Power to the mill
Between 1824 and 1830, the mill made use of hand looms, later driven by two water wheels, Old Josh and the North Wheel. The giant Lily Wheel, located on the western side of Scotland Mill, replaced the smaller wheels in 1838. At the time, this wheel was the largest of its kind in the country, being 17ft wide and 50ft in diameter. In 1886 a new steam turbine was installed which made power to the water wheel redundant and after 25 years of standing idle the Lily Wheel was demolished. The mill estate also housed a gas works to supply the village with gas lighting, it was one of the first villages to have gas lighting in the country.
The Lily Wheel
The mill’s chimney was located at the south eastern end of the main mill buildings and stood 41m high. It was eventually demolished in February 1982.
Compstall mill finally closed its doors as a spinning mill in 1966 and since then it has been divided into many different commercial units and many parts of the original mill have sadly been demolished. The mill was sold a number of years ago and now lies derelict, the state of the building has been declining within the last few years and rumor has it that the owner wants to completely demolish it.
The mill site as it stands today
The main remaining buildings are:
1 - Victoria mill
2 - Albert mill
4 - Weaving sheds
9 - Scotland mill
This was a fun explore and i would definitely recommend if you're in the area.
Anyway, here are the pictures
The Weaving Sheds
The Engine House
Scotland Mill
The tiny stairs into the basement...
The Basement and tunnel
I wonder if this is from the spinning days...
In the basement there was a hole in a bricked up archway which led to a culvert.
I believe that this is the original tailrace from the Lily Wheel but i may be wrong.
I decided to venture further into the tunnel to try and see what was at the end, i ended up very muddy and my shoes were full of water.
The end of this tunnel was unfortunately bricked up and there was a plastic pipe feeding water into the culvert. I think that on the other side of that bricked up wall could be the remains of what was the wheel pit for the Lily Wheel.
Thats about everything i saw, the entrances to Victoria and Albert mill have all been sealed off due to the recent fire but there are still many hidden gems dotted around this place!
Thanks for looking
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