ORCHARD MILL
On corner of Railway Street and Square Street.
Built mid- late 19th century – by John Schofield. [Holden – Beetson]
1861– Farmer & Schofield Orchard Mill – cotton spinners. [Drake]
1871 Schofield, Booth & Co – cotton spinners, Orchard Mill, Ramsbottom. [Worrall]
1876 - Owner and occupier of an un-named cotton mill on Railway Street. Site comprised:
Mill 4 ½ storeys 2317 sq. yds
Scutching Room 2 storeys 379 sq. yds
Waste Shed 1 storey 64 sq. yds
Boiler Shed 1 storey 72 sq yds
Grinding Place 1 storey 16 sq. yds
Engine Power and fixed machinery
Chimney 40 yds
Land as site.
[Valuation List TLE - PUB 8/44 1876 - Bury Archives]
1883 J & J Stead, cotton spinners, Orchard Mill, Railway Street, Ramsbottom.[Barrett]
1887 J & J Stead, Orchard Mill – 8,000 spindles, 30/52 weft. [Worrall]
1888 J & J Stead cotton spinners, Orchard Mill, Ramsbottom [Slater]
John Kellar Kirk Stead lived at Holcombe Bank – he was the son of Laurence Stead.
James Millership Stead lived Irwell Mount – he was the son of Henry Stead.
1892 In the Rate Assessment Book for Tottington Lower End [PUB/11/30] John & James Stead are listed at ‘cotton mill on Railway Street’. In the ‘owner’ column the word ‘Steads’ is crossed out and the name Thomas Ashley Crook is inserted.
1908 Not marked or named on map. However Charles Lomax Ltd., Orchard Mill, Railway Street is listed under contractors/joiners/builders on the 1908 map ‘trades’ section.
1909 [Kelly] Orchard Saw Mills, Railway Street, Charles Lomax Ltd.
1910 Chas. Lomax owner/occupier of contractor’s yard on Railway Street [Valuation List PUB 8/164 TLE Bury Archives]
1913 Charles Lomax Ltd – builders - Orchard Mill [Kelly]
1924 John William Bracewell, a manufacturing chemist was listed at Orchard Mill. [Kelly]
1939 map it is marked as Orchard Chemical Works.
On an undated map in Ramsbottom Library labelled ‘about 1950’ Orchard building is outlined but it is not marked or named. All the other buildings are marked as ‘mill’ or ‘works’ which tends to indicate that Orchard was not in use at this time.
Newspaper cutting in a scrapbook found in RHS - undated but on a page relating to 1960-64:- ‘To come down soon’ - Orchard Mill, Ramsbottom at the corner of Square Street and Railway Street which as previously reported is being pulled down. Latterly used as a warehouse by Stubbins Paper Mill Company (now Wiggins Teape (Stubbins) Ltd)), it is believed to have been worked for the manufacture of cotton by the Grant Brothers. Article shows a photograph of the mill.
I have found a copy of a print of a painting by Miss Sladin, of Railway Street/Orchard Mill. It is document NO: 579 RHS Archive at Bury Archives. There is no indication as to the date it was painted. Hume Elliot makes reference to Mr H.L. Sladin, Chairman of the Ramsbottom Local Board 1892 and Mr Sladin’s shops in Bolton Street. [Elliot page 103 – footnote and page 114] However, I don’t know if this was the same Sladin family.
Demolished before 1971. [information from Janet Smith. Source: Beetson]