tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2032523336425422182024-03-12T20:21:12.205-07:00Friends of the Flaxmill MaltingsThe Friends of Flaxmill Maltings (Friends) were formed in August 2010 in response to the public consultation and growing interest and enthusiasm for the development of the Flaxmill Maltings amongst the community.
Our Vision is that the Flaxmill Maltings is brought back to life at the heart of the community.Friends of the Flaxmill Maltingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14932157892830002694noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-203252333642542218.post-91551358402346677762015-11-26T23:46:00.000-08:002015-11-26T23:46:19.106-08:00A GIRL CALLED ANN AND HER FLAXMILL STORY<div class="MsoNormal">
By Penny Ward, Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings<o:p></o:p></div>
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In May 1805 a 12 year-old-girl called Ann Adams was
indentured as a Parish Apprentice to the Flaxmill to the age of 18. She had
been born in Birmingham, and her father was William Adams, of the Warwickshire
Militia. Her mother, who was dead, had
presumably come from Shrewsbury. <o:p></o:p></div>
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On the 21<sup>st</sup> of September, 1814, at the age of 21,
Ann married Robert France, who had been born near Wem in 1791, but whose
parents, Robert and Alice had moved to Shrewsbury by 1800, when his younger
brother Jeremiah was born. Both Robert, Ann’s Husband, and Jeremiah, and
several of their children, had a long association with the Flaxmill.<o:p></o:p></div>
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In March 1815 (6 months after their marriage) Robert and
Ann’s first child, Jeremiah, was born. They were living in Castle Foregate and
Robert is described as a Labourer. Three months later, Robert’s father Robert
died. He had been living at the “Old Factory”, and probably had been working
there as well.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxed0NEvzZrehY6Ne7gJu2E3H50qrNYqqpzi8xdjT66hJc_T1W1Tw8I_mDG4g5gcDi8fxibS2G7HD7inbTbNxNlnO3JGwRSHs4yHQxDsmx_WnZyV5sbwFKxBqp1wuEgyBCZBLJlgPySEU/s1600/image.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxed0NEvzZrehY6Ne7gJu2E3H50qrNYqqpzi8xdjT66hJc_T1W1Tw8I_mDG4g5gcDi8fxibS2G7HD7inbTbNxNlnO3JGwRSHs4yHQxDsmx_WnZyV5sbwFKxBqp1wuEgyBCZBLJlgPySEU/s640/image.png" width="449" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">*Sarah France, a great niece of Ann Adams </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The Church Rate books indicate that Robert and Ann went on
to live in the “Houses near the Old Factory”, later called “Spring Gardens”
from 1816 until the gap in the run of Church Rate Books after 1836.<o:p></o:p></div>
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During those years they had more children: Robert, in
October 1816, George in July 1821, Eliza in September 1823, Henry in March 1829
and Emma in August 1831. In all their baptism records, except that for George,
Robert’s occupation is given as “Dyer”. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In the 1834 to 1835 Church Rate books, which unusually
record occupations, Robert is described as an Overlooker at the “OM” (Old
Mill). <o:p></o:p></div>
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In 1837 Robert and Ann’s first born, Jeremiah, died aged 22.
He was a Dyer and had been living in Spring Gardens, presumably with his
parents, as in the 1841 Census, all his siblings are still at home. The now
eldest son, Robert, aged 25, is described as a Clerk, and his father’s
occupation is confirmed as an Overlooker. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Their son George married a girl called Martha in 1845, when
he was only 16. In the 1851 cencus George and Martha are running the Engine and Tender
public house in Castle Foregate, and have two young sons. His siblings, Robert
and George, are still living with their parents in No 21, Spring Gardens. They
appear to have a 14 year-old-servant girl living with them. Robert senior is a
Dyer of Thread, Robert Jnr is a Writing Clerk and George is an Overlooker. Eliza
is married to Henry Howard and living in Simpson’s Square. <o:p></o:p></div>
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In September of 1851 Robert and Ann’s son Robert married
Elizabeth Birch. His father’s occupation is given as Overlooker and his own as
Accountant. All this suggests that Robert and Ann and their family are going up
in the world. When Robert and Elizabeth
baptised their first child, Alice Ann, in August 1852, Robert’s link to the Flaxmill
is confirmed when he is described as Clerk in Factory.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ann’s husband Robert died in 1860. Ann aged 68 is, therefore, a widow in the 1861 Census, still living in Spring Gardens and apparently
earning a living as a Beer House keeper. She is the head of the household
comprising her unmarried son George, who is a Factory operative, and a 21 year
old female servant and her 9-year-old grandson Robert Howard, aged 9. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Ten years later, in 1871, Ann is still living in number 21, Spring
Gardens, aged 78, and an Annuitant. </div>
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She has a housekeeper, and also living with
or visiting her at that time is her 8-year-old granddaughter Mary Ann Trentham.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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In the 1881 Census, Ann is still living in Spring Gardens,
and is living off “Income from Land”. </div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3zf3Lg8EQ226ZiqtbI6fRsc5SgZkaBKauzODnR5TA37-_Od0ApOAsvQQ6EqmfZ-v2r7ojB0tC2YFx8X08jpJxytseQ08alBwflqzsrQY8qL4UXPv-owqQjO-YStZBkzhaOx4iZVECnPw/s1600/27335_004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3zf3Lg8EQ226ZiqtbI6fRsc5SgZkaBKauzODnR5TA37-_Od0ApOAsvQQ6EqmfZ-v2r7ojB0tC2YFx8X08jpJxytseQ08alBwflqzsrQY8qL4UXPv-owqQjO-YStZBkzhaOx4iZVECnPw/s640/27335_004.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aerial view of Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings and surrounding area including Spring Gardens</td></tr>
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Her granddaughters by her son Robert,
Frances and Mary France, aged 24 and 21 respectively, are living with her as
her companions. An entry for Ann France of Shrewsbury in the
Index to the Death Duty Registers for 1886
not only suggests that she lived to the great age of 93, but also that
she died as a woman of some substance.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgXEUthTdoh7fFLYuMV5BndSRyBDXcoCD55DA4M22WY4xVS1-59oxaadWxOeYSb8Iuc04vT8Gr9mFbueoTBZHE2OFiIOrjUasomvMIYIHhproKRtVvswaCIgo_9l_QtLCz-jcdAQZrNE/s1600/France.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="389" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgXEUthTdoh7fFLYuMV5BndSRyBDXcoCD55DA4M22WY4xVS1-59oxaadWxOeYSb8Iuc04vT8Gr9mFbueoTBZHE2OFiIOrjUasomvMIYIHhproKRtVvswaCIgo_9l_QtLCz-jcdAQZrNE/s640/France.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br /></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">*</span><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px;"> </span><span class="yiv0054746139" id="yiv0054746139yui_3_16_0_1_1448483786983_19098" style="background-color: white;">We have found a direct descendant of Ann. Ann was the great aunt of Sarah France [pictured above]. Sarah's great great granddaughter, Sue Barker, is still living in Shrewsbury today. And if you haven't worked it out yet - that makes Ann the x 5 great Aunt of Sue. </span><b>See our <span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/FriendsOfTheFlaxmillMaltings?directed_target_id=0&filter=2" target="_blank">Facebook</a> </span>posting for Sue's story.</b></span></div>
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Penny Ward is a Trustee for the Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings and Historic Environment Records Officer for Shropshire Council.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197426215935997954noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-203252333642542218.post-90965780503232634062015-11-22T23:00:00.001-08:002015-11-23T13:18:45.289-08:00 THE PARISH APPRENTICES - THE STORY OF JOSEPH WOODALL AGED 10<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"> By </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Friends of the Flaxmill. Research by Penny Ward</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXiChIkkmkDhRuZUxeytY_XNDaYUOhpDr88k5dzBd_Of5O5VRJTujESMgui6S7EVRT0yOEMXIzzNfeyLS4Vq_cMje8Z2kmoEEwdlXl_NGBJrja-MIOVYrk6ynzI7A6ZKweFF0xb4CCd-I/s1600/GR15+Flat+capped+boys+outside+Mill+site+Shropshire+Archives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXiChIkkmkDhRuZUxeytY_XNDaYUOhpDr88k5dzBd_Of5O5VRJTujESMgui6S7EVRT0yOEMXIzzNfeyLS4Vq_cMje8Z2kmoEEwdlXl_NGBJrja-MIOVYrk6ynzI7A6ZKweFF0xb4CCd-I/s400/GR15+Flat+capped+boys+outside+Mill+site+Shropshire+Archives.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Flatcapped boys outside the Mill. Image courtesy of Shropshire Archives</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Friends of the Flaxmill have conducted
extensive research into the real life stories behind the Mill, using sources
including census entries, parish registers (from baptisms to burials) and the lists
of parish apprentices assigned to Marshall and Co at #Flaxmill by the
Shrewsbury Parishes and the Atcham Union of Parishes in the early 1800s.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">A significant part of the Shrewsbury Flaxmill workforce in the early
C19th consisted of parish apprentices.
These were children, usually orphaned, who were placed with employers by
parish overseers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It was a well-established system that flourished
with the development of the factory-based textile industry.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Many children were apprenticed to factory
employers who had to take on responsibility for their food, clothing and
lodging.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The majority of the apprentices
who were used at the Flaxmill arrived via the town’s workhouse but also from
further afield.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">The mill’s owners, therefore, built two apprentice houses to accommodate the recruits – one in 1799
outside the mill and one in 1811 within the site.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Both buildings still exist.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4HkrhNtA_jCcfsaAMKpzRKd0ewQ8ueu-KqUYuON5boSvuPRm3eL8PZ9zck4-3fNn4RxBlwS69abfG6SCEJDAJnO4QG-4ALg6PxMc5SKkQcfsLryFm5mxzJFH_GxO1IzMbwQF3th3J8o/s1600/N060075+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK4HkrhNtA_jCcfsaAMKpzRKd0ewQ8ueu-KqUYuON5boSvuPRm3eL8PZ9zck4-3fNn4RxBlwS69abfG6SCEJDAJnO4QG-4ALg6PxMc5SKkQcfsLryFm5mxzJFH_GxO1IzMbwQF3th3J8o/s320/N060075+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apprenctice House which still stands on the <br />
Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings site today</td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">The apprentice system has been criticised
for providing cheap labour (children earned no wages) with inadequate training,
so the opportunities for apprentices to move out of the system and set up their
own enterprises were few and far between.
Counter-arguments claim that the system could provide good knowledge of
a trade and provide advancement through the ranks. John Marshall, owner of the
Flaxmill, was known for having a more humane approach than most, but the work
was hard, hours were long. Testimonies
from the time cite working hours of 5 am until 8 pm. Punishments including beatings were routinely
administered. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGhDKNy3LIaii2uUiwOA08ia5lMyjkLEFBA5F-av9KPR2edvJzyB76juxjQCRJZnfurcZO5kwFHDg8LZ_tdm2aWCbJHnhtwufiIyGwMH_DM8pBcKspIpOXW6p7AvFm5ilUwqzUYRHWjzQ/s1600/Flaxmill+Infographic-3-01+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGhDKNy3LIaii2uUiwOA08ia5lMyjkLEFBA5F-av9KPR2edvJzyB76juxjQCRJZnfurcZO5kwFHDg8LZ_tdm2aWCbJHnhtwufiIyGwMH_DM8pBcKspIpOXW6p7AvFm5ilUwqzUYRHWjzQ/s320/Flaxmill+Infographic-3-01+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Joseph Woodall</span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> was one of these
apprentices. He was from the parish of
Fitz and was indentured to the Flaxmill at the age of 10 in 1809. He then
appears in the Church Rate Books from 1821 to 1823 and beyond. From the Parish
Registers, it can be found that he married Hannah Pheasey in 1821 and that
between 1822 and 1843 Joseph (described as a Flax Dresser) and Hannah baptised
six children at St Marys Church.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">In the 1841 Census, Joseph and his two
eldest children are Flax Dressers and in 1844, when his eldest son married,
Joseph was still a Flax Dresser. In the 1851 Census, Joseph was an Agricultural
Labourer, but three of the four children living with him had Flaxmill type
occupations, and in the Tithe Map Schedule he had one of the Marshall Company
Allotments.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">In 1858, his daughter Harriet was working
at the Factory when she baptised an illegitimate son John.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">In the 1861 census Joseph is a Thread
Dyer, and Harriet and her son John are living with him and<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Hannah. Ten years later, in 1871 (aged 72)
Joseph is just described as a Labourer but still may be working at the Flaxmill,
as might his grandson John Woodall, also just described as a Labourer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Joseph remained associated with the Flaxmill
for most of a reasonably long life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">It did not turn out so well for some of
the other Apprentices, as a number of records in the Shrewsbury parishes burial
registers indicate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri-Bold;">John Richards</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">, described as an
Apprentice at the Old Factory, was buried in January 1805, aged 12.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri-Bold;">Ann Bates</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">, assigned to the Flaxmill
aged 9 in August 1805 was buried in January 1806.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri-Bold;">Sarah Oliver</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">, an Apprentice living at
the Old Manufactory, was buried aged 15 in July 1811.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri-Bold;">Emma Franks</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">, assigned to the Flaxmill
in March 1812 at the age of 13, was buried in May 1817, aged 18.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">William
Maddox</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">,
assigned to the Flaxmill aged 11 in February 1805 until he reached 18, died at
the age of 19 and was buried in June 1814.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Joseph
Harris</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">,
assigned to the Flaxmill aged 10 in August 1805 until he reached 18, died and
was buried in January 1817, aged 21. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Edward
Drury</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">,
also assigned to the Flaxmill aged 10 in August 1805, but until he was 21, died
and was buried aged 22 in June 1818.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Hannah
Corfield</span></b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">
was assigned to the Flaxmill at the age of 15 in February 1805 until she
reached the age of 18. She married Thomas Nicholls in 1815, aged about 25, but
she died in the House of Industry (the Workhouse) in January 1825 aged 33. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">You can find out more about the people of
the Flaxmill when the site opens permanently to visitors for the first time at
its launch on November 24th.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">Opening hours will be:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">25 November to 1 December, 10 am to 3 pm daily.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">Then as follows:</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 72pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "courier new"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">o<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">2 December 2015 -
26 March 2016, Saturdays only, 10 am to 4 pm<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 72pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "courier new"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">o<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">31 March 2016 – 29
October 2016, Friday, Saturday, Sunday 10 am to 4 pm<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 72pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "courier new"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">o<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">Closed 25 - 26
December and 1 - 3 January<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197426215935997954noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-203252333642542218.post-34832633022195770032015-11-19T02:00:00.000-08:002015-11-19T02:34:42.993-08:00ONE OF THE MOST CHALLENGING AND TECHNICALLY COMPLEX REGENERATION PROJECTS IN THE COUNTRY IS ABOUT TO OPEN ITS DOORS<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By guest writer Tim Johnston, </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 18.4px;">Historic England Project Director</span><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJt38et18JeO1ww6ZmSJ1UADQADq934LuI7WATAEc5a-dYHuFrHqtFg3nBmMr41treA0248POm8A_B9cRgqlSub2b0-U-_8lDNPzOxvOsTK-xUEwSia8Tvx_SchqjF-aY6QzygocR1uoo/s1600/DP164595.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJt38et18JeO1ww6ZmSJ1UADQADq934LuI7WATAEc5a-dYHuFrHqtFg3nBmMr41treA0248POm8A_B9cRgqlSub2b0-U-_8lDNPzOxvOsTK-xUEwSia8Tvx_SchqjF-aY6QzygocR1uoo/s200/DP164595.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">From
left to right - Tim Johnston (Project Director, Historic England), </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Daniel Kawczynski (MP for
Shrewsbury & Atcham), </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Alan Mosley (Chairman of the Friends of the Flax Mill
Maltings), </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Councillor Mal Price (Shropshire Council). </span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #404040; font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Behind is the south silo
which has now been demolished, viewed from the south east.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Looking
around me here at Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings it’s hard to believe the changes
that have occurred over the last 12 months. There is still so much to do before
the entire site is rescued and brought back to life but we have come a long way
since the site was taken on by Historic England in 2005, when we were known as
English Heritage.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Until
recently a huge reinforced grain silo, built in the 1950s, dominated the site. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEUlG8jiqBxO9FnFtYa1xWK8W4pj-JGEV-jfyxclbm45Atdy1ehyphenhyphenGMU1aKtnEnQ_tfouXXhT464XHTd2w4hYTTFGnE1zlHdvfP_aETGrKMORnEcShBp4DHxEmJoOHxANKPceIOsLeCO4/s1600/2006_0503Image0003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHEUlG8jiqBxO9FnFtYa1xWK8W4pj-JGEV-jfyxclbm45Atdy1ehyphenhyphenGMU1aKtnEnQ_tfouXXhT464XHTd2w4hYTTFGnE1zlHdvfP_aETGrKMORnEcShBp4DHxEmJoOHxANKPceIOsLeCO4/s320/2006_0503Image0003.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The offices and imposing silo which has now been taken down</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It has now gone, providing an open public space for events and activities. It
wasn’t easy to demolish because it was next to the oldest iron framed building
in the world – a grade 1 listed structure. It certainly couldn’t simply be
‘blown up’ but had to be ‘nibbled’ down piece by piece by metal pincers like
some giant concrete eating pac man! To ensure the historic buildings were
protected, sensor alarms were placed on the surrounding structures in case the
machinery caused potentially damaging vibrations. All went well and the
historic buildings now have ‘room to breathe’- it was quite an exciting
process!</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Elsewhere on
site, all is not quiet in the 2 buildings that will soon become the visitor
centre. The designers are putting the finishing touches to the exhibition that
will tell the fascinating story of the site from Flaxmill to Maltings.
Visitors will also be able to explore the building’s role during World War II
and learn more about the people who worked here, many of them only children. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs1OwcChFxsKX99zLrOQ5A3tb7Z9M1QWP5PZYKcZajjyI5umL1ncs2Xf-7o8hDZR12wbQ3jJULcaS0nivkX6Z_S8NySK-96eDyDPm0izGz02L6yAzcB3IHPjyKHjFQS0j7zXP1s_X7I3U/s1600/GR15+Flat+capped+boys+outside+Mill+site+Shropshire+Archives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs1OwcChFxsKX99zLrOQ5A3tb7Z9M1QWP5PZYKcZajjyI5umL1ncs2Xf-7o8hDZR12wbQ3jJULcaS0nivkX6Z_S8NySK-96eDyDPm0izGz02L6yAzcB3IHPjyKHjFQS0j7zXP1s_X7I3U/s320/GR15+Flat+capped+boys+outside+Mill+site+Shropshire+Archives.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Children made up a large part of the workforce<br />
[Image courtesy of Shropshire Archives]</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is so
much to know about this site. My favourite fact is that the Flax Mill had gas
lights in 1811, some 9 years before the Town’s first gas lights! It must have
been an extraordinary sight - walking out of Shrewsbury on a dull winter’s
night and seeing the 5 floors of the Flax Mill all lit up. The warm glow may
have encouraged people to want to work there, but it was hard, unhealthy and
noisy work with some 900 spinning wheels and twisting machines being driven by
the massive steam engines. By the 1840s one third of the workforce was children
under 16, but this was no benign apprenticeship- children as young as 9 would have
to work long hours. These and other stories are told throughout the visitor
centre on the beautifully designed information panels around the site. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UylYgFBwrR8VvyTFZBuQ1KLof6O7Fwbxs9yzdred8kKLRPKqhzJEHnTwRL0fhmvWY21IOIb5X-yDE6kKwxLIt0lklgGHCR-4ImZq8TmRRFHf57d-YjSvR4IihVd6p7sz2BCuop5Npyc/s1600/040-12d-01+-+interior+artwork+for+PR+agency_Page_12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UylYgFBwrR8VvyTFZBuQ1KLof6O7Fwbxs9yzdred8kKLRPKqhzJEHnTwRL0fhmvWY21IOIb5X-yDE6kKwxLIt0lklgGHCR-4ImZq8TmRRFHf57d-YjSvR4IihVd6p7sz2BCuop5Npyc/s400/040-12d-01+-+interior+artwork+for+PR+agency_Page_12.jpg" width="335" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the information panels which is being installed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">The Friends of Flaxmill Maltings, who will manage the visitor centre, will be
delighted to welcome you. It’s free! You can find out openings times by visiting </span><a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings</a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/"></a><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">It’s now
only 5 days to go until we open and like any building project there are times
when you wonder if the day will ever come. Works projects can be particularly
difficult on sensitive historic sites where unforeseen problems often crop up. One
issue here was finding unknown gas and water pipes, not marked on any plans,
right in the path of the drainage run for the new toilet! A lot of ‘humming and
harring’ took place before it was agreed that they weren’t ‘live’ and we could
ignore them, but it did delay the project for 3 weeks. I have to give credit to
Croft the contractors who have done an excellent job.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCThGWAAaFTi05id5E9e8nD1b1N4AaPcp_UXs8OfO3UI7C6wEmnimyV9bh9oyZV1H87jE85m9-xPMsFSsYMzdmat0dZJAJdpTCYmXjU1rQWa6kLCxMr_slOk6G3wyAPLp1X4Qq26n7G4/s1600/2015-10-12+12.14.28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBCThGWAAaFTi05id5E9e8nD1b1N4AaPcp_UXs8OfO3UI7C6wEmnimyV9bh9oyZV1H87jE85m9-xPMsFSsYMzdmat0dZJAJdpTCYmXjU1rQWa6kLCxMr_slOk6G3wyAPLp1X4Qq26n7G4/s320/2015-10-12+12.14.28.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The offices have now been tranformed <br />
into a new visitor centre</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I hope you
will come to see the visitor centre for yourself. Its opening marks two ‘firsts’:
for the first time people can turn up
when they want and look round the site without the need to book in advance. It
is also the first step in a journey to repair and find a new use for the Main
Mill which respects its unique significance and brings the Flaxmill Maltings
back into the life of the Community. This project will not be without its challenges and it has been described as <b>'one of the most challenging and technically complex regeneration projects in the country'<o:p></o:p></b></span></span><br />
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</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmElbvykMuEcdx-ILIajdfFq4DNZbnMOHTQCwJ6ouxZ45sQDbSeqH_QzkcpEuw2ZcHScct57Eb1KZMEgMLBd_KlObLRRflrDBo2neyBsMOgNe5GY7aZF1ukwWk4qPS5XcX3fLpfWJuVII/s1600/N060119.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmElbvykMuEcdx-ILIajdfFq4DNZbnMOHTQCwJ6ouxZ45sQDbSeqH_QzkcpEuw2ZcHScct57Eb1KZMEgMLBd_KlObLRRflrDBo2neyBsMOgNe5GY7aZF1ukwWk4qPS5XcX3fLpfWJuVII/s320/N060119.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Having the world's first iron frame building in the main mill<br />
- a forerunner to the modern day skyscraper - has meant<br />
this has been a complex regeneration project</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></span><br />
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://historicengland.org.uk/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">Historic England</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">, the Friends
of the Flaxmill and our partners are determined to give this unique historic
complex a new life in its 3</span><sup style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 115%;">rd</sup><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; line-height: 115%;"> century. I hope you will support us.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Read the latest <a href="http://webmail.historicenglandservices.org.uk/q/120Sp3FlzeCsOIpppvBm/wv">Historic England Newsletter</a> which includes more information about the Flaxmill.</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197426215935997954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-203252333642542218.post-82985590049560192982015-11-09T02:31:00.001-08:002015-11-09T02:31:47.632-08:00Researching the People of the Flaxmill by Penny Ward<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUb5dEbdEZI9_xNPkIeGveprV1v4GzS7MC9BUu2Dr9CySsUE8EpSBNfddBo93q2ph5QprOGEYmvSiWah_jR9KvHRJa8KtyNkvv9qsWirbmSTFh0YBwhryWKZZBG5RX1ryQcS6kB8_m_M/s1600/photo+%252860%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrUb5dEbdEZI9_xNPkIeGveprV1v4GzS7MC9BUu2Dr9CySsUE8EpSBNfddBo93q2ph5QprOGEYmvSiWah_jR9KvHRJa8KtyNkvv9qsWirbmSTFh0YBwhryWKZZBG5RX1ryQcS6kB8_m_M/s320/photo+%252860%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Penny Ward, Trustee of the Friends of the Flaxmill <br />Maltings</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">As the Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings is a community
organisation it was natural that the main focus for any historical research we
did would be the social history of the people who worked in the Flaxmill or
lived in the housing that grew up around it.</span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">How were we to go about this? All the people who had worked
at the Flaxmill were long dead, and their stories had passed out of living
memory. Before we could ask questions about their lives, we had to know who
they were. To do this we had to look for sources that would at least give us
the names of these people.<o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">The 19<sup>th</sup> century censuses that can now be viewed online
were an obvious starting point, and in early 2012 a couple of us resolved to
simply transcribe the details of every person recorded in the Castlefields and
Ditherington area in the earliest available Census, that of 1841. I designed an
Excel spreadsheet for us to record the Census information in a tabular format,
and when they were completed I imported those tables into an Access database. <o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">More volunteers joined us, so we then set about capturing
the Census data for the same area for 1851, 1861, 1871 and eventually 1881. The
Censuses gave us not only people’s names, but their occupations, their ages,
their place of birth and their family groupings. However, they only covered the
second half of the 90 year history of the Flaxmill, and only gave us snapshots
of the situation at 10 yearly intervals. <o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">So, I looked for other sources. We did a trawl through the
printed and microfiche parish registers picking out people whose occupations seemed
to link them to the Flaxmill. I
transcribed the names of all the Parish Apprentices assigned to the Flaxmill by
the Shrewsbury parishes, as well as the people who in 1851 were renting one of
the Flaxmill allotments. Shropshire Archives made us aware of the “Church Rate”
books. These record every householder in the parish and what they had to pay
annually, primarily for poor relief. These survive from 1799. <o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">All these lists of names have been imported into the Access database,
and we are now able to move to the next phase. For any surname, it is possible
to generate a list of all records relating to individuals with that surname,
and from that ask questions and begin to tease out family stories. The Shropshire
parish registers became available to search online in April 2014. Using these
we can find out, for example, what an individual’s father’s occupation was when
they were born, or sometimes when they were married. We can link the young
unmarried girl to her married older self, by finding out who she married. All
these records are fed back into the database, so that all the time more details
are being filled in. <o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">Record by record we are populating the Flaxmill and the
streets around it with real people who actually lived there rather than
anonymous shadows. So far we have uncovered many fascinating stories and
discovered so much about the lives of certain families associated with the
Flaxmill, such as the France and Clift/Cliff families – from illegitimate
births to the personal tragedies of losing children as young as two years of
age. We would love to hear from anyone
who can shed further light on these people and their stories.<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinZ5fh-ki1UOMbJnLXZlVB1es9MK-yKv7MspMc9htWdf6F8N-o-A3a3zjEbxWHlSxqUQ08hRaMOqxYlbJg3zQbGUtRQRyVwwJUqKLOZfzvdrqaAlctSgVJ0L26ylgkLJFsJoJH2c1upZM/s1600/GR15+South+end+of+Spinning+Mill+c1900+horse+and+cart+Shropshire+Archives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinZ5fh-ki1UOMbJnLXZlVB1es9MK-yKv7MspMc9htWdf6F8N-o-A3a3zjEbxWHlSxqUQ08hRaMOqxYlbJg3zQbGUtRQRyVwwJUqKLOZfzvdrqaAlctSgVJ0L26ylgkLJFsJoJH2c1upZM/s320/GR15+South+end+of+Spinning+Mill+c1900+horse+and+cart+Shropshire+Archives.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Courtesy of Shropshire Archives</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;">Our work will continue with the opening of the Visitor
Centre on 24 November and, we hope, gain further momentum by being located on
the site that inspires it, and that our visitors will include the descendants
of the hundreds of people who laboured there. <o:p></o:p></span></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: black;">Read more about the research on the Friends of the Flaxmill
Maltings <a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/">website</a>;
follow us on twitter
@flax_maltings and use the #flaxmill hashtag; or like and look for further
updates on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/FriendsOfTheFlaxmillMaltings?fref=ts">Facebook</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: black;">Find out
more about the Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings regeneration project at <a href="https://historicengland.org.uk/news-and-features/major-projects-shrewsbury-flax-mill">Historic England</a></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></a></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/flaxmill-maltings-story">Penny Wardis a Trustee for the Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings and Historic Environment Records Officer for Shropshire Council.</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197426215935997954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-203252333642542218.post-60394610160679866162015-10-28T11:26:00.001-07:002015-10-28T11:40:47.154-07:00BRINGING SHREWSBURY FLAXMILL MALTINGS BACK TO LIFE - RIGHT AT THE HEART OF THE COMMUNITYWritten by the Chair of Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings, Alan Mosley<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Q3PTb-sYbufUz9EdcuecxfXPxZiKO0aUJDv7eM5YqSu8DU-Qb-aAKp5yJJS_iBFa_TJ2Ai1_EcBlK7DhOSnqmgUzHc7pMwFN1lwpMH_Av7gYQ0x8JEWc1SUhkAedZEl5LGrQEKLCoGA/s1600/Ditherington+Panoramc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0Q3PTb-sYbufUz9EdcuecxfXPxZiKO0aUJDv7eM5YqSu8DU-Qb-aAKp5yJJS_iBFa_TJ2Ai1_EcBlK7DhOSnqmgUzHc7pMwFN1lwpMH_Av7gYQ0x8JEWc1SUhkAedZEl5LGrQEKLCoGA/s320/Ditherington+Panoramc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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During my first election campaign for Castlefields and
Ditherington in 2005 many residents commented that something should be done
about the Maltings! Indeed, most
believed that it should be knocked down to remove the blight on the area and
blot on their landscape. They knew little about the Flaxmill that preceded the
Maltings and gave rise to the first iron-framed building in the world.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOooQwfQ-8keFTLPAUdl1SzLdmn46NnYOL6LnryYOuD0rkGmTGt-_VPF1altbZNDlVV9kzem5nQoO8A6tOmTWOt-y85CqEFgY_c3MHb8o1wclKIj0alPtE1qURqkboKsFSEHTweWEpn8/s1600/N060119.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSOooQwfQ-8keFTLPAUdl1SzLdmn46NnYOL6LnryYOuD0rkGmTGt-_VPF1altbZNDlVV9kzem5nQoO8A6tOmTWOt-y85CqEFgY_c3MHb8o1wclKIj0alPtE1qURqkboKsFSEHTweWEpn8/s320/N060119.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The world's first iron framed building - a forerunner to the modern day skyscraper<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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</td></tr>
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Now I am inundated with questions about the state of
progress towards the site’s conservation and the vast majority are proud of the
heritage which lies at the heart of our community. They realise the massive
potential that conservation will bring for the regeneration of their area.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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My election led to my involvement with the Working Party
seeking to get work on the site underway after the failure of 2 projects by the
private sector. So the roller coaster of
hopes and disappointment started!
However, there was always hope as clever, experienced and enthusiastic
people were involved.<o:p></o:p></div>
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A step-change happened in 2010 when the Friends of the
Flaxmill Maltings was formed and we were quickly able to engage with the local
and wider community, so that they too could learn about, experience and enjoy
all aspects of the site and the stories which lie within. Since then the Friends have been true
partners in the project working alongside Historic England and Shropshire
Council. Thousands have visited the
site, we have gained much media attention and aroused enormous amounts of
interest and engagement.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Thankfully the Heritage Lottery Fund and other funding
agencies have recognised our work, the very significant public interest and the
clear plans we have for future efforts.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Once completed the Friends will manage all aspects of the
public access to the site including interpretation, learning, research, tours,
special events and community facilities.<o:p></o:p></div>
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For now though we are nearing the completion of Stage 1 of
the project, work which we expect will kick start the larger elements of the
overall project. This first stage has
seen the conversion of the office and stables which will be managed by the
Friends as a visitor centre, including reception, interpretation displays, film
and audio material, research and learning resources. The demolition of the
1950’s silo has also provided pleasant open space for cultural, interpretation
and public use, while much of the surrounding area has been improved.<o:p></o:p></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3DM1_Gr8soi1FAN2Q-aC2hVx8mxxn9bJ7dJ-z7BKRLAkRZtmVuxDEsN5PAUuKHaJoAbDbXv2dG6AMkLBTrs9u-HsxsNBEaHpEVJ1kr-dIXKY-YroPGiiARD690AtWMwasfm0zX0_Gbo4/s1600/2015-10-12+12.14.28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3DM1_Gr8soi1FAN2Q-aC2hVx8mxxn9bJ7dJ-z7BKRLAkRZtmVuxDEsN5PAUuKHaJoAbDbXv2dG6AMkLBTrs9u-HsxsNBEaHpEVJ1kr-dIXKY-YroPGiiARD690AtWMwasfm0zX0_Gbo4/s320/2015-10-12+12.14.28.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The new visitor centre is nearing completion</td></tr>
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The opening of the Visitor Centre at the end of November
will be a fabulous event for us and for all who care and have great hopes for
the third century of successful life for the site. Our aim is to bring the site
back to life at the heart of the community and hence we are delighted to have
played such a prominent role in achieving this first stage towards that
ambition. This success is testament to the hard work of many volunteers and the
enthusiasm of the local and wider community for this exciting project.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Come and visit us – it’s free! Opening times are as follows:
<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">25
November to 1 December, 10 am to 3 pm daily.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;">
</span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">Opening
times are then as follows:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 72pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Courier New"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">2 December 2015 -
26 March 2016, Saturdays only, 10 am to 4 pm<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 72pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Courier New"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">31 March 2016 – 29
October 2016, Friday, Saturday, Sunday 10 am to 4 pm<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt 72pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -18pt;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Courier New"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">o<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span><!--[endif]--><span dir="LTR"></span><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">Closed 25 - 26
December and 1 - 3 January<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">Guided tours are
available by appointment. For details
visit our website </span><a href="http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk/"><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Source Sans Pro","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0cm; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; padding: 0cm;">http://www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12197426215935997954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-203252333642542218.post-85703239836186600712015-10-20T06:48:00.001-07:002015-10-20T06:48:34.631-07:00WelcomeHi, this is a new blog for the Friends of the Flaxmill Maltings.<br />
<br />
We'll be sharing news here about our soon to be opened visitor centre, so follow us and find out more!<br />
<br />
Check out our website at www.flaxmill-maltings.co.uk<br />
Twitter @flax_maltings<br />
Facebook www.facebook.com/FriendsOfTheFlaxmillMaltings<br />
<br />
<br />Friends of the Flaxmill Maltingshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14932157892830002694noreply@blogger.com0