DOTCLIFFE MILL

[Stanley]

DOTCLIFFE MILL. KELBROOK. NR. EARBY

OS. SD 907446


STATE OF THE RESEARCH AT 01 May 2003.


1836. History of Lothersdale, p. 146. Mention of Smallpage having a mill in Kelbrook.

1853. Dotcliffe shown on First Edition 6” OS map and marked ‘Water powered cotton mill’. The form of the lodge shown on the map closely follows what can be seen on the ground today.

1857. Anecdotal report in AWOL (A Way of Life Gone by) that Smallpages ran the mill and they had a serious fire in 1857.

Undated. Harry Wilkinson’s grandfather had a dye house at High Fold and there was a pub on Dotcliffe Lane called the Half Way House because it was half way between Elslack and the Cloth Hall at Colne. (AWOL)

1896. Barrett mentions Nathan Smallpage as being at ‘Bridge Mills’. This almost certainly Sough. No mention of Dotcliffe.

1902. No mention of Dotcliffe Mill in Barrett’s directory.

1906. GS info. Five small steam engines included in the sale of 25/07/1906.

1912. New mill was built by J J Duckworth.

24/05/1929. Craven Herald. Report of a council meeting in Earby when it was stated that the rise in unemployment in the town was due to repairs being carried out at Dotcliffe Mill. This resulted in 60 men and 60 women being added to the total.

02/08/1929. Craven Herald. Report that Skipton and District mills are all out on strike following employees refusing to accept 12 ½ % reduction in wages forced on them by the manufacturers. Barnoldswick and Earby work as normal under a local agreement which binds the manufacturers to Lancashire decisions. Dotcliffe is closed because they work under the Nelson Agreement.

02/01/1931. Craven Herald. More Looms System. An official at Spring Bank Manufacturing Co stated that they had been trying out some weavers on eight looms but most of their workers were still on four looms.

23/01/1931. Craven Herald. Notice of a lock-out was posted last week in Earby mills but postponed until February 14th. Dotcliffe Mill at Kelbrook (Spring Bank Weaving Co.) which is not a member of any manufacturer’s association has carried on with the eight loom sets and advertised for weavers to replace those on strike. They are only 30 weavers short of this target.

02/02/1931. Craven Herald. Report that Dotcliffe Mill continues to weave on eight loom system, they have 16 sets of eight looms and the four loom sets and all other operations are being run by non-union labour. Mr Procter, the managing director of Spring Bank Weaving said that they had been members of the Nelson Manufacturers Association but had resigned. The assistant secretary of the Colne and District Weaver’s Association, Mr E S Kay of Earby said that 70 workers were recognised as being on strike at Dotcliffe. The article commented that Dotcliffe’s position was unique and it remained to be seen what effect their stand would have on the More Looms dispute.

06/02/1931. Craven Herald. Dotcliffe Mill ignores the lock-out and has set on knobstick weavers. Only 100 looms idle.

13/02/1931. Craven Herald. Report that Skipton lock-out is to be lifted on Monday. Earby lock out will start on Monday and 2000 workers will be idle. Sough Bridge and Dotcliffe run as normal as both are outside the Earby Manufacturer’s agreement.

29/05/1931. Craven Herald. Report of a temporary stoppage at Dotcliffe due to a breakdown.

08/07/1932. Craven Herald. Report of warp slashing at Dotcliffe. 70 warps stabbed. Manager of Spring Bank Company found the damage when he opened the mill at 07:00 on Monday the 4th of July.

16/09/1931. Craven Herald. Report that Albert Hoggarth, engineer at Dotcliffe Mill had been fined 10/- with 3 guineas costs for poisoning fish in Harden Beck by blowing down undiluted boiler water into the beck. The poisonous agent was ‘Noncrus’.

07/10/1932. Report in Craven Herald that Albert Hoggarth, 38, of 2 James Street Salterforth, engineer at Dotcliffe Mill had been found hanged by John William Wilkinson manager of the Spring Bank Weaving Co. He came to work at 06:40 on Tuesday, couldn’t find the engineer, started the engine and then found Hoggarth hanging over the turbine hole. It was asserted by Jeannie Smith of 24 Dotcliffe Road Kelbrook that Hoggarth had been visiting her mother and it was believed she wanted to give him up. Hoggarth had been heard to say that if she did he would commit suicide. The body was identified by the deceased’s brother Herbert Hoggarth of Barnoldswick (also an engineer at Butts. SG) He said that Albert Hoggarth had worked at Dotcliffe for three years. (? Heaton took over as engineer at Dotcliffe)

1932. James Rushton, local Communist, held meeting on Jepp Hill in Barlick and it was decided to go to Dotcliffe the following day to knock the belts off as they were carrying on working through the strike against 7 ½ % wage reductions. They were waylaid by the police at New Road End at Kelbrook and there was a baton charge that scattered them into the fields. The reason Dotcliffe was carrying on was that it was a non-union shop and the manufacturers, Spring Bank Weaving Co had been members of the Nelson Association but had resigned.

1938. Worrall’s directory, 1938. Spring Bank Weaving Co cited as manufacturers at Dotcliffe Mill. 460 looms.
Ditto in 1939, 440 looms in 1940.

1941. February 20th. Calf Hall Shed Co minutes record that Dotcliffe Mill were looking for storage space for shafting and had approached the company.

1957. Worrall. Cites Dotcliffe Mill (Kelbrook) Ltd as weaving at Dotcliffe with 440 looms. Charles Lord manager. No entry in Manchester Exchange Directory for 1965.

1965. 78/AH/15. LTP. Fred Inman says that Booth and Speak had Dotcliffe sometime before 1965 before moving down to Albion Shed in Earby. Sometime between 1960 and 1965 Dotcliffe was gutted by a fire started by the ‘Fire Bug’ who was very active in the area at the time. He/she was never caught.

1982. 82/JM/01. LTP. Page 17. John Metcalfe, last manager at Clough Mill in Barlick, stated that he thought Fred Midgely was the engineer at Clough before George Hoggarth. George went to Bancroft from Clough Mill. He says that Herbert Hoggarth at Butts was no relation to George but was brother to Albert at Dotcliffe.

UMP entries for Dotcliffe.
May 3rd 1924. BI ordered I HP piston rod packing, 3 ¼ “ diam, No. 22947 for J J Duckworth and Company. A note in the order book says that this was replaced by another packing in May 1931. [This isn’t a big engine, the rod size looks about right for 200/250hp to me. SG.]


SCG/01 May 2003