Last few days in the UK

We arrived in Wilmslow in Cheshire not far from Manchester just as the weather was changing – lots more autumn colour in the trees, some rain and it is damp underfoot. Winter is on the way!

We looked to see what National Trust properties were in the area and decided to go to ‘Quarry Bank’. We had no idea what to expect, and discovered that this is a wonderful NT property to visit. It is a former Cotton/Textile Mill that was originally owned by the Greg Family. The mill building is huge and in its heyday employed 100’s of people and is one of the best preserved textile mills from the Industrial Revolution. The mill is now a museum and tells the story of mill workers and how the industrial revolution changed the world. Styal (the nearby village) was chosen for a number of reasons, but mainly because of the suitable head of water provided by the River Bollin.

Quarry Bank - the huge building is the former cotton mill.



A view of the woodland garden walking track - to the River Bolin.

When you visit Quarry Bank you see demonstrations by hand spinners and see early wooden looms that still produce some cloth. Quarry Bank Mill was one of the first generation of water-powered cotton spinning mills. There are several large looms and spinning machines in good working order that are all powered by steam and carefully maintained by NT volunteers. The mill still produces fabric today from the machines that are used for demonstration. The mill ceased full commercial production in 1959 and now is managed and looked after by National Trust.

A NT member demonstrating on  one of the wooden looms



A steam powered spinning machine.



Steam powered looms.

Some interesting sayings and words we use today, originated from mills such as Quarry Bank:

·        ‘Spinster’ – this originated because single adult women often stayed at home and spun raw cotton into yarn and became known as spinsters.

·        ‘Heirloom’ – the complicated wooden looms were made by families and then passed onto future generations, hence heirloom.

·        ‘Carrying the can’ – child labourers carried cans and were employed to pick up scraps and lint from the floor of the mill.

Quarry Bank also had an Apprentice House, which housed the child labourers who worked in the mill. Most of the children who worked here came from workhouses and were orphans. While they were looked after better than the workhouses, life was still pretty tough for these children. They worked very long hours and were expected to attend school for a few short hours each week to get some very basic literacy skills.

The 'Apprentice House'

 

When we first arrived at Quarry Bank we noticed a lot of preparation for Halloween. We wondered what the origins of Halloween were and after checking we discovered that: Halloween is thought to have originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off roaming ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1 as a time to honor all saints and martyrs; the holiday, All Saints’ Day, incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows’ Eve and later Halloween. Over time, Halloween evolved into a secular, community-based event characterized by child-friendly activities such as trick-or-treating. In a number of countries around the world, as the days grow shorter and the nights get colder, people continue to usher in the winter season with gatherings, costumes and sweet treats.

Halloween decorations in the garden.

More Halloween decorations.

We also found time to visit another amazing NT property called “Little Moreton Hall” - this was built to make a big impression. Little Moreton Hall was constructed during the Tudor period, with the earliest part of the house begun in around 1504 and the latest addition being completed in 1610. The Moreton family were wealthy landowners in the area and built the moated manor house as a symbol of their prosperity. It does look like what some people refer to as a ‘gingerbread house’. The property is delightful despite the fact that the NT only has 3 original pieces of furniture there. Again we were fortunate enough to be there in time for a guided tour. The original home did not have flag-stone floor (as you see today) it had a ‘thresh’ floor. A thresh floor was made up of straw, cuttings from wildflowers and herbs and would have been about 6 inches thick. To stop the wind blowing the thresh away when the door was opened, they had a wooden edging on the floor in the doorway to hold the thresh in – hence the saying “over the threshold”.

The amazing Little Moreton Hall.

This 'advertising' was done when the house was built!

The back of the house.

One piece of furniture in the house is the original ‘oak board’ table. The word board always signified that food was available or served – hence the term ‘boarding house’. Early family members ate their meals at the board table but only the head of the house sat in a chair (others sat on stools) – hence the term ‘chairman of the board’. After meals the board was often turned over and games were played – hence ‘board-games’.

The original oak 'board table'.

 

The beautiful Tudor glass windows.
There are several thousand of these small panes of glass in the house.

 

These days the house looks quite crooked and some of the floors are rather uneven – but safe. This was a delightful property to visit and quite unique.

The decoration on the 2nd floor 'long-room' was quite interesting.

 

Just for something completely different we met up with friends who took us to Jodrell Bank Telescope and Discovery Centre. The discovery centre caters for adults and children. You can explores the wonders of the universe and learn more about the gigantic ‘Lovell Telescope’. This was an enjoyable outing, but I must admit I do have difficulty with the whole concept of space and galaxies.

The huge 'Lovell Telescope'.

Our last overnight stop is at Stoke-on-Tent in Staffordshire – or, as it is known here as ‘The Potteries’. This is a very old city and is well known for its many potteries such as Wedgewood, Moorcroft and Spode just to name a few. The city is located on canals that were originally used to transport raw materials for the potteries. The canal towpaths are popular walking and cycling routes, linking several of the town’s green spaces, including several parks and lakes. We did walk for some distance along one of the tow-paths and again we were very lucky with the weather – it was a lovely picturesque walk for most of the way. And, yes we did visit some pottery showrooms – Emma Bridgewater, Wedgewood and Moorcroft. I was really impressed with the Moorcroft centre. You could see people working and hand-painting ceramics. We finished off  the day with a great pub meal at ‘The Plough’

A tow path along one the canals. 

I have really loved the UK & Ireland – next stop Hong Kong.