#cheshire congleton

[lydsnaylor]

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[lydsnaylor]

[lydsnaylor]

“I mean I’ve lived in Congleton all my life forever and ever, and the textile industry was such a massive part of our lives when we were younger. I mean not so much now but even down to things like when they used to do the big carnival floats all the things that Conlowe’s and whatever. (Yes, definitely.)But as I said before my great grandfather was the mill manager of Stott & Smith and obviously that’s why I’ve got photographs and things of all of that.”

[lydsnaylor]

“You couldn’t be too aloof. You had to nurture those relationships because you needed to know how to get the best out of them and how to give them the best, sort of thing.”

[lydsnaylor]

When I left Umbro I went to erm where’d I go? I came through to Astbury lighting and they’d never had piece work there.

(Right, where was that? Was that in Congleton?)

Yes Victoria, y’know, where Victoria Mill is the ‘antiquey’ place.

(Yeah.)

If you’re in the bottom between Victoria Mill and the leisure centre.

(Yeah.)

There’s a little car park at the bottom of Victoria Mill, it’s that building there just behind. It was a dance studio recently but that was Astbury lighting. That had been going for a long time, they made lamp shades for British Home Stores and all sorts of big stores, but it was the same, there’s lots of sewing, lots of manufacturing and that. I went in there to put piece work in. I think there might’ve been some piece work but there, you see, there were some really high earners there so that had to be, that was difficult with very high earners. I mean they were highly productive, but they were earning too much, which you shouldn’t really say, but they were earning too much the factory couldn’t afford it.

[lydsnaylor]

There’s a red brick factory, I think it’s a sports place now.

(Ok)

Or something, and it was near st. Stephens primary school.

(Ok)

And that was, and across the road there used to be another factory. One was Elizabeth Mill and Edward Mill.

(Ok)

Edward Mill is the one that’s left and that’s where I started work.

(Ah, ok)

I worked in Edward Mill which was the oldest one.

(Ok)

And we made, oh, various things, we mad jumpers and our department was called. That was like woven material, y’know like, what would you say, y’know you get a length of cloth and its cut out but then, because it was a three story, on the second one they’d got knitting machines. And they knitted lengths like a jumper size but just it had still got to be cut out.

(Ok)

And um, and that stuff was used in Edward Mill. In the department I went to work in, I was the dispatch clerk.

(Right)

Now if this isn’t the sort of thing you want then stop me.

(No, this is perfect, its really giving me an understanding of individual roles)

Ok, well in our section we made wooden scarves and they were knitted in a long tubular strip. You couldn’t say it was wool but it was very soft yarn. And they were made for British Home Stores.

They’ve gone now haven’t they.

(They’ve been gone a while now)

I mean I always say, if I got a pound for every scarf handled, I should be a millionaire!