Minerva Mill, Ashton-under-Lyne
Encyclopedia
Minerva Mill was a cotton spinning mill
in Ashton-under-Lyne
, Greater Manchester, England. It was built between 1891 and 1892 for the Minerva Spinning Company which was later known as the Ashton Syndicate. Minerva Mill was next to the later Texas mill, at Whitelands. It ceased spinning cotton in the 1920s and was demolished in 1937.
, close to the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
, at Whitelands. It was at the end of Minerva Road.
, Atlas Mill
, Curzon Mill
, Tudor Mill
, Cedar Mill and finally the adjoining Texas Mill
. The Minerva Spinning Company went out of business in the 1920s.
In order to run these spindles in the spinning rooms, the cotton had to be prepared using openers, scutchers, carding engines.
Cotton mill
A cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
in Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...
, Greater Manchester, England. It was built between 1891 and 1892 for the Minerva Spinning Company which was later known as the Ashton Syndicate. Minerva Mill was next to the later Texas mill, at Whitelands. It ceased spinning cotton in the 1920s and was demolished in 1937.
Location
Minerva mill was built in a bend in the River TameRiver Tame, Greater Manchester
The River Tame flows through Greater Manchester, England.-Source:The Tame rises on Denshaw Moor in Greater Manchester, close to the border with West Yorkshire but within the historic West Riding of Yorkshire.-Course:...
, close to the Huddersfield Narrow Canal
Huddersfield Narrow Canal
The Huddersfield Narrow Canal is an inland waterway in northern England. It runs just under from Lock 1E at the rear of the University of Huddersfield campus, near Aspley Basin at Huddersfield to the junction with the Ashton Canal at Whitelands Basin in Ashton-under-Lyne...
, at Whitelands. It was at the end of Minerva Road.
History
The Minerva Spinning Company Limited was registered in 1891 to build the Minerva Mill at Whitelands. The directors were Messrs Barlow, Marland, Coop, Newton, Pollitt and Pownall; they were later referred to as the Ashton syndicate. The syndicate went on to build the Rock MillRock Mill, Ashton-under-Lyne
Rock Mill was cotton spinning mill in the Waterloo district of Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, in England. It was built between 1891 and 1893 for the Ashton Syndicate by Sydney Stott of Oldham. Rock Mill was built on the site of Wilshaw Mill retaining and using the octagonal chimney...
, Atlas Mill
Atlas Mill, Ashton-under-Lyne
Atlas Mill was a cotton spinning mill in the Waterloo district of Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, in England. It was built between 1898 and 1900 for the Ashton Syndicate by Sydney Stott of Oldham. It was last mill in Ashton cease spinning...
, Curzon Mill
Curzon Mill, Ashton-under-Lyne
Curzon Mill , later known as Alger Mill was a cotton spinning mill in the Hurst district of Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, in England. It was built between 1899 and 1902 for the Ashton Syndicate by Sydney Stott of Oldham. It was a sister mill to the Atlas Mill. It was sold to the Alger...
, Tudor Mill
Tudor Mill, Ashton-under-Lyne
Tudor Mill was cotton spinning mill in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, in the United Kingdom. It was built between 1901 and 1903 for the Ashton Syndicate by Sydney Stott of Oldham. Tudor Mill was next to the Ashton Canal Warehouse at Portland Basin...
, Cedar Mill and finally the adjoining Texas Mill
Texas Mill, Ashton-under-Lyne
Texas Mill was a cotton spinning mill in the Whitelands district of Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester, in England. It was built between 1905 and 1907 for the Ashton Syndicate by Sydney Stott of Oldham. It was destroyed in a massive fire on 22–23 October 1971...
. The Minerva Spinning Company went out of business in the 1920s.
Architecture
Four storeys over a basement.Power
The steam engine was a 1500 hp twin triple expansion engine by Daniel Adamsons, of Openshaw built in 1906. The cylinders were christened Capital and Labour. It had a 18 ft flywheel that operated at 75 rpm. The flywheel drove 40 ropes that transmitted the power to each floor. The cylinders all had Corliss valves. They had a 48in throw, the High pressure was 22 ½" in diameter, the intermediate was 34 in and the low pressure was 56in. The air pump was driven from the low pressure crosshead, there was a Saxon governor on the high pressure end of the bed.Equipment
The mule frames were provided by John Hetherington and Sons Ltd. On startup here were 86,868 mule spindles spinning medium counts from American cotton, that was 40's twists and 65 wefts. By 1903, this had increased to 93828, and by 1920, 22,000 doubling spindles had been added.In order to run these spindles in the spinning rooms, the cotton had to be prepared using openers, scutchers, carding engines.
| Number | Machines | Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Vertical Openers and scutchers | 1 : 43,434 |
| 4 | Intermediate Scutchers | 1 :21,717 |
| 93 | Carding Engines | 1 :934 |
| 63 | finishing deliveries of drawing | 1 :1,380 |
| 792 | Slubbing spindles | 1 :109.7 |
| 1716 | Intemediate spindles | 1 :50.6 |
| 6680 | Roving spindles | 1 :13 |
| 86,868 | Mule spindles | 1 :1 |