Bollen [Bollin] Mills, Wilmslow - Does anyone know where in Wilmslow?

[Birtle]

The 1851 Census (HO107 2162 51 36) has a Charles Barber, Silk Throwster, lodging at 2 Manchester Road

See the 1874 entry under this potted history of the Carrs Mill (which, incidentally is the other side of town from the Bollin Walk corn mill) in Wilmslow? http://homepage.ntlworld.com/bryan.burtonbj/carrs_mill.htm
The webpage also offers quite an insight into how mills were adapted through the 19th cent to meet the winds of economic change (ugh, how corny!. Oh dear, sorry - that's even worse).
I actually hadn't realised this prior to digging around with regard to this thread, so as some of my Wilmslow ancestors were employed in the cotton trade and fustian cutting amongst other things my nose is now well and truly twitching. Thanks to NickT for asking the question in the first place.
Birtle

[Ray T]

The larger brickworks (more permanent) were at the Cheadle side of Stockport so perhaps your ancestor progresed to a moulder or a  kiln setter.  A ' burner'   was a very skilled position because the ultimate quality of the bricks depended upon the firing. Incidentally burners were often poached  by new companies setting up smaller brickworks.
KimH

Got it slightly wrong Kim. He was a "brickmakers labourer" in 1901 but still living in Mobberley (Knolls Green). He gives his occupation as "general labourer" in 1911 when the whole family are boarding on Church Street in Wilmslow. It looks like the family are on the way down rather than up although he may still have been involved in brickmaking.

The family lived in the middle of Cheadle (that's the Stockport version) and not close to the brickworks which started life on the western side of Ladybridge Road, north of the brook, although I suspect that they only excavated the clay there transporting it to the kilns on Adswood Road where you'll still find them.

[ChrisGreen]

Hello everybody,

First time poster here, i was happy to see an active thread after a related google search. I can add a little bit more information, but i'm unsure about the drying kiln. I've just had a flick through 'The Old Community, A History Of Wilmslow' and there are no references to it.

What i can say is the location of the Bollin mill was definitely on the left hand corner of manchester road (where the rounabout turns left down towards the second Atlantic/Polar ford garage roundabout.
The lade here will now be underground. (pesky tarmac) The only remaining part of the lade (I think) can be seen on the Wilmslow park side of the bypass. You'd probably have to look pretty hard as it's quite overgrown there now.
This lade continued under the road and ended at the weir in Wilmslow park.

As for remains of the old mill goes, the whole area was redeveloped, i think, if you could see anything, it would be around the old river wall underneath the bridge on manchester road. I may have a pop down there tomorrow. ( I live in walking distance).

As for the silk mik you mentioned Hanes, that was located on the Carrs, between the bridge nearest the play area, and the wooden bridge just a short distance west from it. I'm  not too sure why it was called a silk mill as it produced cotton. After this it turned into Wilmslow Laundry acknowledged as such in (1906?), and was then used to store various goods until it finally burned down in the mid 1920's. It's strange because i've walked past the spot 1000's of times and only pinpointed it recently. You can see tiny bits of old wall if you look hard enough. You wouldn't have thought that once a 3-4 storey building stood there.

Wow anyway, i'm sorry for the ramblings, but this thread has perked me up, as it seems to be the only one running right now. I'll keep an eye on this.

Happy hunting.

[millymcb]

Hello Chris - Welcome to Rootschat

Thanks for taking the trouble to register and add to the thread..   

We always have lots of interesting discussion going on here at Rootschat. If you have a look around perhaps you'll get as hooked as we all are


Milly 

[hanes teulu]

Chris,
A warm welcome to Rootschat and thanks for the confirmation of the location of Bollin Corn Mill.

regards

[kimhulme]

Had a quick look at a book in Poynton library today, reference only = 'Portrait of Wilmslow' by Howard Hodson. Quite a bit about Bollin Hall and the corn mill.
K

[NickT]

I didn't expect to provoke so much thought and interest around this subject.  How wonderful!  It looks as if my question has been thoroughly answered and I can set my mind to rest on that matter.

Just for the record my Roylances originated in and around Dean Row and my Roylance ancestor married a woman from Mobberley and moved there.  I myself started life in Mobberley spending my first 21 years there but then moved away what now seems a very long time ago.

Thank you.

[Su]

I have a book in front of me by Roy Westall called Wilmslow and Alderley Edge, Quarry Bank Mill and Manchester Airport

There is a photo of Bollin Mill which was a corn mill taken from the old viaduct.  The Parish Church is in the background to the right.  I lived in Wilmslow for 25 years and Mum and Dad from 1949 to 2009, so know it well.  There are also two photo's of the old silk mill down the Carrs which with the decline of the silk industry was converted into a calico printing factory.
In the early 18th century there were six cotton mills in the village two of which stood on ground near the river which now forms part of the churchyard.
We used to play down the Carrs as kids and teenagers but the silk mill was long gone by then.
As mentioned above, where Bollin Mill Gibsons Yard and other workshops stood is completely unrecognisable now as its been converted into a Bye-Pass.

[Joey.t]

Am new to the site and have only just noticed this post. Bollin Mill was a corn mill on the corner of Manchester Rd and the road leading to the bypass. It belonged to my great grandfather William Kitchen from the 1880s. He lived in Prescott House on the same site. I have a photo of the mill with a lake beside it and the tower of St Bartholomew's church can be seen in the distance. The site was redeveloped in the 60s, I think.