Summary
Late-C18 cotton-spinning mill by Sir Richard Arkwright, extended in the later C18 and altered in the C19 and C20.
Reasons for Designation
Building 18 at Cromford Mill, constructed in the late C18 by Sir Richard Arkwright, extended in the late C18 and later altered in the C20, is listed at Grade I for the following principal reasons:
Historic interest:
* the mill was constructed in the C18 by the entrepreneur Sir Richard Arkwright who was pioneering in his use of water power to mass-produce cotton thread, which came to be of outstanding importance in the development of textile mills;
* for its technological interest as an exceptionally early survival from the first generation of water-powered textile mills which illustrates the wider trends in the history of this industry;
* dubbed the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, the mill complex became the blueprint for factory production, with Arkwright’s factory system replicated internationally.
Architectural interest:
* the building is a good example of a late-C18 industrial building and while austere, is of clear quality and design interest;
* good quality late-C18 features survive including a classical Gibbs surround doorway, mullion windows and coursed stonework.
Group value:
* the late-C18 buildings survive remarkably well as a group and help to demonstrate the functioning of this early textile mill complex.
History
The development of the cotton industry in the Derwent Valley in the late C18 has been determined as a key precursor to the Industrial Revolution in Britain. This development initially began with the construction of the Silk Mill in Derby in 1721 for the brothers John and Thomas Lombe, which housed machinery for throwing silk, based on an Italian design. However, it was not until Richard Arkwright constructed a water-powered spinning mill at Cromford in 1771, and a second, larger mill in 1776-1777 powered by the Bonsall Brook and the Cromford Sough, that the ‘Arkwright System’ was truly established. This system was a true blueprint for factory production and was soon replicated elsewhere in Britain, and later in other parts of the world. Along the valley, industrial development followed soon after in Belper (1776-1777), Milford (1781) and Darley Abbey (1782), with these four principal industrial settlements articulated by the river Derwent. Into the C19, the mills along the Derwent Valley were limited in their possibility for growth due to topographical constraints and distance from ports through which cotton was imported. This limitation has to an extent ensured their survival. Overall, the landscape created by Arkwright’s factory system remains largely intact.
The construction of the first mill (now known as the Upper Mill or Building 18) at Cromford commenced in 1771. In its original form the building contained 11 bays and was five storeys in height. It was originally powered by an overshot wheel with water brought to it by an aqueduct. The aqueduct would have passed narrowly above the entrance to the building on the east elevation, which is framed by a classical, Gibbs surround. In the 1780s, the mill was extended by 10m adding four additional bays at the north end, with a water wheel added to the north gable. The site expanded in this period with the majority of buildings constructed to the east of the first mill.
From around 1840 the production of cotton at Cromford ceased due to the lack of an adequate water supply which severely limited production. Thereafter the buildings were put to other uses including a brewery and cheese warehousing, its main uses being as a colour works (1914-1979) and a commercial laundry (1895-1966). A fire in 1929 destroyed the two upper storeys of the Upper Mill, and the building was subsequently re-roofed in asbestos sheeting. The Arkwright Society purchased the site in two phases in 1979 and 1988 and oversaw the restoration of the mill buildings. The site is currently (2023) open to the public.
Details
Late-C18 cotton-spinning mill by Sir Richard Arkwright, extended in the later C18 and altered in the C19 and C20.
MATERIALS: constructed of millstone grit and lined with brick and limestone, the building has timber sash windows with the roof covered in asbestos sheeting.
PLAN: linear on plan the building is oriented roughly north-east to south-west.
EXTERIOR: the mill is constructed of coursed millstone grit under a gable roof and is 28.3m long and 8m wide. The principal facade of the mill faces roughly east, into the yard of the mill complex. It contains 13 visible bays (with two further bays concealed by building 17 to the east), the upper two floors containing a window opening under flat arches with stone voussoirs. The openings on the upper floor all contain windows with 16 panes, some with eight-over-eight sashes and others are replacements with fixed frames within the sash boxes. The ground floor contains windows within the eight north bays, each with 20 panes of glass and with stone voussoirs and flat arches to match those above. To the south are two bays which contain larger stone ashlar blocks indicating some rebuilding and an opening to accommodate a water wheel. To the south is a large inserted opening (currently (2023) boarded up) under a steel joist. The final visible southern bay on the ground floor contains a window opening which has been infilled with brick. To the south, concealed by a brick wall connecting the upper mill from building 17, a door with a classical, Gibbs surround leads to the interior of the mill. Above the door, sections of walling carry a surviving section of a cast-iron aqueduct (which replaced an earlier timber one); this would have continued to the north to power an overshot wheel. The south elevation to the road has a blocked workers’ entrance door and blocked taking in doors at first floor.
The west elevation, designed as the principal façade, faces into the upper yard. At the south end the building is partially obscured by a later, two-storey linear range (Buildings 21 and 26) and a separate, single-storey gable building slightly to the north (Building 20). The fenestration on the original 1771 mill matches those on the east elevation, with flat arches and eight-over-eight sashes. At ground floor, a double timber door under a stone lintel has been inserted at the north end of the original building. The north four bays, which were added in the 1780s, are of random rubble construction on the two lower floors, utilising part of a previous building in this location. The second floor contains windows with 16 panes under crude stone flat arches with the first floor containing two matching windows between slim openings containing eight panes. The ground floor contains two larger openings with 20 panes, the north window under a flat arch, the one to the south under a segmental arch. To the north a very small opening has been infilled.
INTERIOR: the interior of the building is a double-height open space currently housing a digital display as part of the mill’s visitor experience. The third floor is not in use and is empty. A small section of modern timber walkway is situated at the south end of the building. There is considerable evidence of original features including floor levels, surviving flooring, power transmission, position of the staircase and heating and sanitary arrangements. Some of the building’s former partitions can be seen with some low sections of brick walling.
