A new recruit

Over the next few months we are hoping to share some of the stories of the wonderful people who volunteer here and keep the museum going. We are always looking for new recruits and if you are interested contact us at the Mill by phone or email, 01773 880474 or manager@belpernorthmill.org.uk. Patricia is one of the most recent volunteers to join the team and she has written this piece to set off this new topic for the blog. My name is Patricia Mayborne and I am a new volunteer at the museum at Belper North Mill. For the last 8 years I was running a property business while living in Portugal and prior to that I worked in Support for Learning at a secondary school on Orkney, in Scotland. I am also a qualified homoeopath. On my recent return to England I have become a lady of relative leisure with the time and good fortune to be able to indulge my interests, and l am enjoying exploring the many opportunities that are opening up to me. I moved to Belper in the summer of 2015, knowing very little about the area. I always like to find out about the history of the place I'm living in, and in the Derwent Valley the history leaps out at you at every turn. I started just by talking to people about the distinctive streets and buildings of the town and reading anything that came my way, then in October I heard about the Discovery Days and spent a wonderful Sunday participating in guided tours around the town and visiting as many sites as I could fit in. After that I was hooked and wanted to get involved in some way -⁠ so I did a quick internet search and was delighted to find that volunteers were needed at the museum at Belper North Mill. My email enquiry was responded to warmly and immediately, and a few days later I was down at the museum meeting Tom over a cup of tea as he explained how everything works, and we discussed what part I could play. My initial interest is in working on reception, building up to giving guided tours round the museum as I learn more about it, so it was agreed that I would come down for a number of sessions to shadow the regular volunteers as I learn the ropes. I am now included in the volunteers' monthly meetings and have several training and information sessions coming up. Everyone I have met has been remarkably friendly and welcoming, and I am learning so much about this fascinating part of the world and its historical and cultural significance. For me it is particularly the impact of working practices on people's daily lives and thinking that I find most interesting, and I hope I can contribute to ensuring that future generations value the role that industry here in the Derwent Valley has played in shaping the world.

The Bear's Tale

Thanks to Christine Smith for this piece on how the Mill worker bears became a very exclusive souvenir in our gift shop.

What makes a good souvenir? That was the problem faced by volunteers trying to raise money for Belper's North Mill. A group visit to Statford-on-Avon gave the answer: everybody loves a bear! However, our souvenir bears had to be something special. Our museum, Strutt’s North Mill Museum, is housed in the first fireproof cotton mill in the world. It is part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site in Belper, UK. It tells the story of the Strutt family and how their enterprise and vision changed the town and the lives of their mill workers. It was this proud tradition that we wanted to celebrate and promote. The first task was to find suitable bears to use, so the project leader, Christine Smith, set about careful research. The bears would have to look traditional, be a sensible size and price and most importantly, look attractive. Then we had to decide on the costumes. Each male bear would have an open-necked shirt, scarf or neckerchief, waistcoat and butcherboy cap. Each female would have a skirt, apron, shawl and cap. Most importantly, they would have names and personalities. Christine researched the local census records from the 1840s to 1860s and found the names and ages of real people who had lived in Belper and worked in the Mill. These were the people who were to be remembered.

Our main costume specialist was Jean Bellaby, who had made theatrical outfits for many productions in the town over the years. Other needlewomen pressed into service were Dorothy Griffin, who produced costumes by the score on her sewing machine, Liz Bolton and Ann Martin who made dozens of shawls and scarves, Pam Lloyd who worked on aprons, and many other volunteers who searched out materials. Christine assembled the items and created labels, as well as sewing many shirts, skirts and aprons. We made a point of using recycled fabric such as old shirts and cut off pieces from other craft projects. Cotton was of course our material of choice. We looked for small checks and floral patterns, thick cotton Oxford for shirts, and even silk from old ties to form neckerchiefs. Many local people gave generously from their patch bags to help us get started. We took personalisation seriously: bears representing older widows might have a black button to secure their shawl, following the Victorian tradition of mourning jewellery. Bears which represented teenage girls might have a jaunty bow in their cap. Small children were commemorated with shorter skirts or outsize caps. As the project developed a new link to past skills was included. To recognise the craft of chevening, or embroidery on stockings, which had been a cottage industry in the town, many of the female bears had an embroidered motif in one corner of the apron, usually with a floral or leaf theme. This allowed many of us to revive our old skills and use some artistic freedom. At last the bears were ready to go, to be launched at a winter craft fair. They sold well, with some being sent off to friends and family as Christmas gifts. We know some bears have ‘emigrated’ as far as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada. The bears are on sale in the gift shop all year round, and will also be available at local craft fairs this Christmas.

The geese are getting fat

Christmas is coming... the geese may not be getting fat, but the shops are full of gifts, the adverts are on the TV and thoughts turn to those special gifts. The gift shop at the Mill has some exclusive presents - from tea towels and mugs to the specially dressed millworker bears.

There's a great range of local books too, including this one, now out of print - just a few copies left!

And there are some lovely traditional toys - perfect stocking fillers.

The mill is open at weekends between now and Christmas. Just call in. And look out for our pop up shop at Christmas events and fairs in Belper. We'll be at the Christmas light switch on on the 27th November and both the Strutts and Christ Church fairs on the 28th. We will also be at the Food Festival on December 6th.

Wakes Weeks

Back in the day there were traditional holiday times. As the pumpkins are sold off cheap, Christmas decorations begin to fill the shops and Father Christmas scales Masson Mill it's interesting to think about holidays. Wakes Weeks were - and sometimes still are - a significant time in the calendar year. Originally connected to religious feast days they became associated with fairs and carnivals, a time to let your hair down and take a break from routine. In mill towns Wakes Weeks were also a time when the mills could be shut down for maintenance, the workforce laid off on an enforced holiday. The mill towns of Lancashire headed for Blackpool, filling the guest houses week after week as different towns took their breaks. Even school holidays were altered to fit in with the mills' working pattern. I know Belper has had a Wakes Day in recent years, and well dressings and sports days were all part of the festivities. I don't know of any Wakes Weeks in November, though of course we have just celebrated Halloween and the fair has been to Belper. In spite of the lack of a Wakes Week, I am about to go on holiday, so there will be no post from the North Mill next week. When I come back I am hoping to share some of the stories and experiences of our great team of volunteers. See you soon!

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness

The clocks have gone back. Christmas decorations fill the shops. Father Christmas is scaling Masson Mill. Summer really has gone, in spite of some of the lovely weather we have had in late October. We can only look forward to the spring. November means that the North Mill only opens at weekends. Less time for the great team of volunteers to get together. Inevitably it means fewer visitors too, until we pick up the weekday reins again in March. It is always possible to book a group visit during the winter months, so do get in touch if you would like to. We are also hoping to have some outings and events for volunteers over the winter months. There will also be events through the winter to keep us in the public eye, so do check out the website. Winter is a great time for creating. We have the spinners here on November 1st to demonstrate their skills. The designers of the new Derbyshire tartan will also be here to talk about their inspiration and plans for this lovely colourful fabric. In the next few weeks I am hoping this blog will be taken over by a local writers' group, who will be sharing their stories inspired by the Mill. Winter is also a good time to catch up on all the essential work involved in running the museum and visitor attraction, from updating policies to historical research, via hoovering! Don't lose touch!

Sweet memories - come and share them!

This weekend a new exhibition opens at the North Mill, celebrating Belper's great retail heritage. Sweet Memories will be running a pop up sweet shop in the reception area on Sunday 25th October. The exhibition is also at No 28 and will then stay at the Mill over the winter weekend opening. We'd love it if visitors got involved, by sharing their own memories of shops in the town. There'll be post it notes aplenty for you to write down your thoughts. These are a couple of my favourite images!

Sew and Sew

Tracey Harris, fine art student at the University of Derby, worked with the mill to produce some wonderful interpretation material for the basement. Material is the right word! Photographs and words are printed onto Victorian nightdresses, bolster cases, pinafores and fabric to provide colour and interest.

There are also memories of learning to sew from our visitors, displayed hanging from bobbins, written on fabric. Men and women, old and young, everyone who visited that day had a tale to tell. I have just come back from visiting the Art_Textiles exhibition at the Whitworth in Manchester. It's an amazing opportunity to see where art and craft meet, and to see how fabric, embroidery, quilting, felting and all forms of needlework can be used to tell a personal and a political story. Items range from Tracey Emin's appliquéd blankets, to a traditional Malian warrior's tunic. One of Grayson Perry's tapestries is on show too. Well work a visit. It also made me realise how lucky we are to have such innovative work at Strutt's North Mill. Tracey was one of the University of Derby interns over this summer. I look forward to seeing future projects from her.