Glaciations of the World: Shipley and Saltaire

The hotel I stayed in was lovely and friendly. The bedroom and bathroom made me jealous given the size of the one we have in the flat. The bed was so big that when I woke up in the morning, only half the bed was mussed up.

Across the road, making up my view, was a mountain range and St Paul's Church.

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There are some brilliant gravestones in the yard. Greenwood Bentley 1777 - 1858 and Knapton Bradley 1824-1872. I did some research on Knapton and in the 1861 census he appears as 'Neptune'.

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Inside St Paul's Church, Shipley. A lady let me in as she was about to do some photo copying of the Parish Maagazine. They have a very vibrant community and it seems they are concerned with supporting the community more so than preaching hell fire and damnation. Very positive given what has been in the media a lot lately.

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There are also some very sad grave stones that list half a dozen or more still born, or short lived children. It seems that the Salt Mill I was headed for was partly responsible for the high infant death rate. 200 chimneys belched out black sulphurous smoke and frequent outbreaks of cholera and typhoid meant only 30% of children born to the textile workers lived to 15 years. The average life expectancy was a shockingly low 18 years.

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Saltaire United Reformed Church - Completed in 1859 the church is an example of Italianate religious architecture and is now a Grade 1 listed building. Sir Titus Salt is interred in the mausoleum. See www.saltaireurc.co.uk for more info.

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Salts Mill, home now to 1853 and David Hockney Galleries, the Saltaire Exhibition and shopping area. See www.saltsmill.org.uk
When Salts Mill opened in 1853 it was the biggest factory in the world. 3000 workers at 1200 looms produced 30,000 yards of cloth a day.

Saltaire, the area I headed into next, takes its name from its founder, Titus Salt and the River Aire, which runs through the village. Salt moved his business and employees from the overcrowded and polluted city of Bradford in an attempt to look after them.

Work on the area began in 1851 and continued until 1876. The Mill was the first building to be completed in 1853.

"The housing provided was of the highest quality. Each had a water supply, gas lighting, an outdoor privy, separate living room and cooking spaces and several bedrooms. This compared favourably with the typical workers cottage.

Salt was also one of the greatest Victorian philanthropists. He donated liberally to good causes locally and nationally. Almshouses were provided rent-free for the elderly and sick in Saltaire. They came with a pension, forty years before the first state pension in the United Kingdom.

By the 1980s the British textile industry was in steep decline...Salts Mill was finally closed in 1986. To the rescue came another brilliant entrepreneur, Jonathan Silver, who bought the Mill and within months opened a gallery exhibiting the work of Bradford-born artist David Hockney...

Saltaire was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2001. It was recognised for its international influence on town planning and as one of the earliest, largest and best preserved nineteenth century 'model villages' anywhere in the world." (Discover Saltaire: UNESCO World Heritage Site: www.visitsaltaire.com).

"Sir Titus Salt died on 29 December 1876, aged 73. The family were not to be allowed a quiet ceremony, however, and the event organised by the Corporation on 5 January 1877, was perhaps the greatest civic event of Victorian Bradford. The hearse proceeded from Crows Nest to the Town Hall. From here a huge procession went forward to Lister Park, headed by the Police, the West Yorkshire Rifle and Artillery Volunteers and representatives from local institutions, followed by merchants, manufacturers and shopkeepers. It is estimated that between 100,000 and 120,000 lined the route. In Saltaire the mill was closed, the streets draped in black and thronged with employees. Senior employees stood on the avenue to the church, to witness the final journey. Sir Titus salt was buried in the mausoleum and so great was the demand to pay respects, that special trains from Bradford were provided" (Saltaire Trail - as above).

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Site of the Wash and Bath house. Opened 6 July 1863. Built for the comfort and health of residents. There were 48 'coppers' and a drying room. In addition there were 12 male and 12 female baths and a turkish bath. It cost £7000 to build but wasn't a success, with most people preferring their own homes.

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"In 1861 Timothy Binns, a woolcomber lived at 13 Shirley Street (above) with eleven children. By 1871, three children had left home, but one married and remained at home with her husband and child, so the house still held twelve. Eight of these were employed, giving a respectable total income of almost £5 a week. Timothy Binns was an important figure in the village and a trustee of the Methodist Sunday School" (Discover Saltaire: UNESCO World Heritage Site: www.visitsaltaire.com).

July 01, 2012

Shipley and Saltaire

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