Well here goes: -
My first post on a forum I have been following for some time now. This is by no means my best work as access was extremely poor. I gained entry via a small opening no more than 4 foot by 3 foot square but not equipped with a torch I wasn’t prepared to go too far inside. I am extremely happy that there haven’t been any previous reports at this particular site so I thought I would share it with you all as my debut.
Situated in the picturesque and rural valley of Honley not far from the village center [but isn’t easily accessible by road] is Lords Mill. I have passed this building several times on my walks through the neighboring fields and woodland. Sat alongside the Mag Brook stream that contributes to the River Holme further down in Magdale, the setting is tranquil and dreamy. Further research though and with the help of The Honley Civic Society reveals that the mill has a much darker history drenched in machinery breakdowns and fires. Although my entry was greeted with complete darkness the exterior of the grade 2 listed building surprised me with some lovely features such as the tapered square chimney and the old windows on the upper floor. I will be revisiting with a torch next time. I have collated some recent information on the mill for you : -
Huddersfield examiner :
The mill was built in 1792 by Lord Dartmouth – the Lord of Lord’s Mill – and occupied since by various clothiers and mill owners. It was extended twice.
Chapters dealing with accidents, fires and social outings paint a fascinating picture of the life of the mill.
Over the years the mill has seen some dramatic incidents.
A blaze broke out on March 10, 1849, in a store or dyehouse. The alarm was spread and many people flocked to the mill and emergency messages were sent for the water engines from John Brooke and Sons in Armitage Bridge and David Shaw and Son of Crossley Mill in Honley. Shaw’s fire engine, Hercules, arrived quickly, drawn by four horses, and they prevented the fire from spreading to the main mill.
Just over 100 years later on August 1, 1952, a severe fire broke out in a carding machine on the top floor at around 12 noon. The flames quickly spread and fire crews from Huddersfield, Holmfirth and Meltham arrived to find the top floor and roof well alight. Two-thirds of the roof was damaged along with half of the top floor and the rest of the building was severely damaged.
In July 1868 a steam engine broke with a tremendous crash. The engine drove all the machinery in the mill and every wheel was immediately brought to a standstill and nearly 100 employees found themselves without work for a while.
Overloading was the cause. The engine was calculated as having a nominal output of 16 horsepower yet it was producing 70 horsepower to run the mill.
In terms of its history, the mill’s first tenants were John and Richard Beaumont and it began as a scribbling, carding and fulling mill.
The fulling mills’ function was to take the clothier’s pieces and to process them to give a dense, felted finish by a practice known as prolonged pounding – and the mill had a water wheel inside it to power the process.
By 1805 the mill’s occupiers were William Elmsall and John Beaumont and the annual rent was £7 and five shillings.
The Heap family – clothiers from Oldfield – took over in 1854. They lived at Crosland Hall and became woollen manufacturers and merchants on a large scale, but by the 1880s times had become tough with a meeting of creditors in 1884 to thrash out the mill’s future and by 1886 the lease had changed to Netherton silk dyer George Oldham.
The mill was in use well into the second half of the 20th century when the building was occupied by Magdale Spinning Company who used the top two floors and by Magdale Textiles on the lower two.
Now, sadly, it is empty and derelict.
My first post on a forum I have been following for some time now. This is by no means my best work as access was extremely poor. I gained entry via a small opening no more than 4 foot by 3 foot square but not equipped with a torch I wasn’t prepared to go too far inside. I am extremely happy that there haven’t been any previous reports at this particular site so I thought I would share it with you all as my debut.
Situated in the picturesque and rural valley of Honley not far from the village center [but isn’t easily accessible by road] is Lords Mill. I have passed this building several times on my walks through the neighboring fields and woodland. Sat alongside the Mag Brook stream that contributes to the River Holme further down in Magdale, the setting is tranquil and dreamy. Further research though and with the help of The Honley Civic Society reveals that the mill has a much darker history drenched in machinery breakdowns and fires. Although my entry was greeted with complete darkness the exterior of the grade 2 listed building surprised me with some lovely features such as the tapered square chimney and the old windows on the upper floor. I will be revisiting with a torch next time. I have collated some recent information on the mill for you : -
Huddersfield examiner :
The mill was built in 1792 by Lord Dartmouth – the Lord of Lord’s Mill – and occupied since by various clothiers and mill owners. It was extended twice.
Chapters dealing with accidents, fires and social outings paint a fascinating picture of the life of the mill.
Over the years the mill has seen some dramatic incidents.
A blaze broke out on March 10, 1849, in a store or dyehouse. The alarm was spread and many people flocked to the mill and emergency messages were sent for the water engines from John Brooke and Sons in Armitage Bridge and David Shaw and Son of Crossley Mill in Honley. Shaw’s fire engine, Hercules, arrived quickly, drawn by four horses, and they prevented the fire from spreading to the main mill.
Just over 100 years later on August 1, 1952, a severe fire broke out in a carding machine on the top floor at around 12 noon. The flames quickly spread and fire crews from Huddersfield, Holmfirth and Meltham arrived to find the top floor and roof well alight. Two-thirds of the roof was damaged along with half of the top floor and the rest of the building was severely damaged.
In July 1868 a steam engine broke with a tremendous crash. The engine drove all the machinery in the mill and every wheel was immediately brought to a standstill and nearly 100 employees found themselves without work for a while.
Overloading was the cause. The engine was calculated as having a nominal output of 16 horsepower yet it was producing 70 horsepower to run the mill.
In terms of its history, the mill’s first tenants were John and Richard Beaumont and it began as a scribbling, carding and fulling mill.
The fulling mills’ function was to take the clothier’s pieces and to process them to give a dense, felted finish by a practice known as prolonged pounding – and the mill had a water wheel inside it to power the process.
By 1805 the mill’s occupiers were William Elmsall and John Beaumont and the annual rent was £7 and five shillings.
The Heap family – clothiers from Oldfield – took over in 1854. They lived at Crosland Hall and became woollen manufacturers and merchants on a large scale, but by the 1880s times had become tough with a meeting of creditors in 1884 to thrash out the mill’s future and by 1886 the lease had changed to Netherton silk dyer George Oldham.
The mill was in use well into the second half of the 20th century when the building was occupied by Magdale Spinning Company who used the top two floors and by Magdale Textiles on the lower two.
Now, sadly, it is empty and derelict.
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