Paradise on the Macclesfield Canal?

Saturday, 22 May 2010 20:26

Paradise can be too much of a good thing!

I am always wary of putting too many photos on my blog - sometimes I can't help it, but if I put all my photos of paradise up you would never download the blog from the ether.

I am not talking an ethereal paradise either! This one is very much down to earth and part of our amazing heritage that is so prevalent on our wonderful inland waterways. Believe it or not - there is a paradise in Macclesfield. Whilst moored in Bollington on the Macclesfield Canal we took a bus back to Macclesfield to explore.

Paradise Mill

Macclesfield was once one of the centres of the silk industry in this country. At one time there were about 160 mills here - cotton and silk mills - run first by water, then steam and finally electricity. The mills declined as competition from overseas trade increased. When visiting Macclesfield, a visit to the Silk Musuem and its associated museums is a MUST.

Paradise Mill's top floor houses a collection of hand Jacquard Looms, one of which was still being used as late as the 1980s by skilled weavers of the now very specialised silk fabric. We took a guided tour with an excellent guide, who explained the history and machines as if he himself was a weaver.

From Japanese silkworm cocoons to beautiful Jacquard silk cloth the process is fascinating

From skeins to loom we were taken through the weaving process. Skein to bobbin, bobbin to pirn, warp loom to Jacquard Loom, it was all there to see!

Invented in 1804 by a Frenchman the making of the patterns for the cloth is painstaking. John was reminded of his early days in computing, as the Jacquard pattern is put on punched cards!

Jaquard patterns design

The design is drawn on charts similar to graph paper and transferred by the cutting machine to the cards, which are then strung together. They are then put on the Jacquard mechanism and make the pattern using vertical bars to control the looms warp and weft. The mechanism is simple, yet takes a bit of understanding!

Jacquard pattern cutter and patterns stored in the Mill

John also recognised the "calculator" in the Managers office; it reminded me of the Enigma Machine. I could not make the date out on the Britannic Calculator but these machines were made to last - John is quite young really!

Britannic Calculator, made by Guys Calculating Machine Co. London

We came away impressed and educated! It rather tied in with our visit two winters ago to the Weavers House in Spitalfields. It also made me ponder again one of our favourite poems - an extract here.

Not 'til the loom is silent

And the shuttles cease to fly

Will God unroll the canvas

And explain the reasons why 

The dark threads are as needful

In the Weavers skilful hands

As the threads of gold and silver

In the pattern he has planned

The full poem (although there are other versions) can be found here - clickety click

Our photo album of Paradise Mill will take you on a full tour with detailled photos of the whole silk waeving process! - clickety click