When I was in the UK last month my brother Tom took Rebecca and me to see the Cromford Mill near Derby.
It’s claim to fame is that it is “The First Factory.” It was founded in 1771 by Richard Arkwright and was according to the brochure “the world’s first water powered cotton spinning mill.”
One of the things they do very well today is spin superlatives and I very much appreciate them.
The spinning machinery that built the mill from an idea in 1771 to a huge industrial enterprise in 1820 has all vanished. But the concepts of water powered equipment, factory towns and organized labor that came out of Cromford resonated around the world. The Lowell Mills National Park in Massachusetts is a descendant of Cromford. The water for the mill came from the drainage of a Lead mine nearby and the mills closed pretty quickly when the drain was changed in the 1820.
Whether Cromford was the first factory depends on the definition of factory but there is no doubt that for people who love the history of industrial development this is a great site. We had an excellent tour and followed it with lunch at the Greyhound Hotel in Cromford. I recommend the Pannini sandwiches. Although I’m sure the curries are excellent.
One last story. The mill was founded in Cromford and used cotton not wool because this was the time of the “Machine Breakers” who opposed any change to the craft based spinning and weaving industry. The machine breakers also known as the Luddities drove Arkwright out of Liverpool and he moved to the countryside near Derby to try out his inventions. The rest as they say is history.
There is an opportunity here for someone to organize a Science, Technology and Industrial Tour of England. It could include sites like the Coal Mining Museum in Wales, Iron Bridge, Cromford Mill and the Museum of Science and Technology in Manchester. Advertise it in Invention and Technology Magazine and Scientific American. Maybe start with articles about and a tour book describing the relevant sites.