Conservation Management Plan Queen Street Mill, Burnley

Home , Loom, Queen Street Mill, Roberts Loom, Shed (weaving), Shuttle (weaving), Textile sizing machine

46 Halifax Road Todmorden. OL14 5QG

T: 01706 813214 J. David Storah Arch. Tech. Cert. E: [email protected] Richard A. Storah Dip. Arch. MA Cons (York) RIBA SCA AABC IHBC W: www.storah.com

Conservation Management Plan

Queen Street Mill, Burnley

Our Ref: 12-044

February 2013 (Revised March 2014)

RIBA Chartered Practice Architect Accredited in Royal Institute of British Architects Building Conservation Conservation Management Plan: Site Contents

Introduction

Commissioning and authorship

About conservation planning.

Aims, use and review

Publication

Section 1 − Understanding the heritage

Section 2 − Statement of signiﬁcance

Section 3 – Risks and opportunities (Discussion draft - not included)

Section 4 – Policies (Discussion draft - not included)

Bibliography and Information Sources

Appendix 1

Statutory Designations and Descriptions

Scheduled Monument

Listed Building

Conservation Area

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1 BACKGROUND TO THE CONSERVATION STATEMENT

1.1 Introduction Storah Architecture has been commissioned by Lancashire County Council to prepare a Conservation Management Plan for Queen Street Mill Textile Museum. The ﬁrst stage in this plan will be a Conservation Statement presented as a discussion document to assess the signiﬁcance of the building, its setting and its contents. Stakeholders who have an interest in the site will be then be able to comment on the document and help inform the management process.

This statement has been prepared by CE Mace MA (Bldgs Archae.) and Richard Storah BA (Hons) Dip. Arch, MA Cons. RIBA SCA AABC IHBC

1.2 Queen Street Mill - A Summary

Queen Street Mill Queen Street Mill is a steam‐powered weaving shed located in the mill village of Harle Syke above the town of Burnley, Lancashire. Today, with its sister museum at Helmshore, Haslingden it forms part of the Museum of Lancashire Textiles Industry. The Mill is quite unique as it still contains its own working steam engine which powers original looms by intact drive systems. The mill was built and run by a village co‐operative and continued to operate until 1982. Recognised for its historic importance the site was bought by Burnley Borough Council, and when faced with later ﬁnancial uncertainty taken over by Lancashire County Council. Set beside its mill lodge on the edge of open countryside the complex typiﬁes the Lancashire Cotton Industry of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The site contains a Scheduled Ancient Monument, Queen Street Mill Engine, which is currently being rescheduled under English Heritage’s revision of the National Heritage List, List ID 1005085. The scheduled site consists of the engine and its house and boiler house and the ﬂue and chimney.

The buildings are listed, grade 1. The site is within the Harle Syke Conservation Area.

1.3 Location The mill is located in Harle Syke a former mill village on the outskirts of Burnley, Lancashire. Part of the village including the setting of the mill is designated a Conservation Area.

1.4 Ownership The mill has been owned by Lancashire County Council Museum Service since 1997.

1.5 Purpose and scope of the statement The conservation statement is intended to provide an understanding of the historical development of the school and its site. It examines and evaluates the signiﬁcance of the building. It is intended to be the ﬁrst stage of a Conservation Management Plan which when completed will form a single, comprehensive document that can be used to:

Consider the scope for change in relation to signiﬁcance;

Provide clear guidelines for the testing and evaluation of new development proposals or for materials changes to the site;

Help prepare long-term conservation programmes for the site;

Make day-to-day decisions with regard to maintenance and repair.

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1.6 Limitations This report outlines the significance of the building and is not designed to be a full historical account or comprehensive description. Appropriate sources have been consulted to inform an understanding of the Building but Storah Architecture recognise that further primary sources and literature are available. Management issues such as fire safety, Building Regulations and access and the condition of spaces and finishes are outside the scope of this conservation statement. It should also be noted that the listed building description (attached as an appendix) is compiled to identify the building and is not a thorough record of the Building’s features.

1.7 Updating the conservation statement The conservation statement should not be considered as being static; updating and amendment may be required as circumstances change. This document should therefore be considered as part of an on going exercise, to be updated at intervals of not more than ﬁve years, or whenever changing circumstances demand.

1.8 Acknowledgements Storah Architecture are grateful for the assistance and advice given by the staff at Lancashire County Council Museum Service and at Queen Street Mill. Thanks are also due to staff at Lancashire Records Office and Burnley Library.

2 UNDERSTANDING

2.1 Context

2.1.1 Setting - Harle Syke Until the mid‐nineteenth century the Harle Syke area was a quiet Pennine hamlet in the sprawling Briercliﬀe with Extwistle Township which developed through handloom weaving and stone quarrying on a modest scale.

The next 50 years would see the village develop into an important textile centre with the introduction of mechanised weaving. By the time of the early twentieth century it had developed a grid‐iron layout of workers’ housing amongst the mill buildings, so typical of the Cotton Industry which had transformed the area. Such is the historic and architectural setting of Queen Street Mill that the townscape is designated a Conservation Area. When ﬁrst designated in 1977 it was stated the area included “the main elements of a typical Lancashire textile town at the turn of the century, all in remarkably authentic condition”.

One interesting note to make about the village is the spirit of ‘co‐operation’ amongst the textile workers in Harle Syke. Beginning in January 1856 with the registering of the Haggate Joint Stcok

Commercial Company the village was to spawn a whole series of co‐operative manufacturing concerns founded by working people. Probably initially founded to provide work for themselves by handloom weavers facing unemployment, these companies evolved until eventually there were ﬁve such concerns accounting for over half the looms in the Briercliﬀe area.

Fig 1. Historic Ordnance Survey map of Harle Syke

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2.1.2 Lancashire Cotton Industry Of the many cotton weaving mills that once existed in Lancashire Queen Street Mill is the only one left that is steam powered and has its original machinery intact. The fact that the engine and its boilers are conserved in working order and driving original machinery in situ means the power unit is of exceptional signiﬁcance. This is reﬂected in its designation as a Scheduled Ancient Monument. It could be that the mill is unique in the world as the only remaining example of a nineteenth century steam‐powered textile factory. The machinery is deemed to be of national Importance as outlined below.

Designated collection As well as machinery from the end of working at the site the Museum is now home to an important textile machinery collection, both these factors affect the significance of the site. The historic collections cared for by the Lancashire County Museum Service are a ‘Designated collection’ as defined by the Arts Council’s Designation Scheme.

Designation Scheme The Designation Scheme identiﬁes the pre-eminent collections of national and international importance held in England’s non-national museums, libraries and archives, based on their quality and signiﬁcance. These inspiring collections represent a vital part of our cultural and artistic heritage.

As English Heritage’s Conservation Principles suggests “Historically-associated objects can make a major contribution to the significance of a place, and association with the place can add heritage value to those objects.” The Museum itself adds to the site’s significance when a place “has been created around accumulated collections…the relationship between the objects… and the place is fundamental to the significance of the place” (English Heritage 2008, 38).

2.1.3 Development The Queen Street Manufacturing Company was established in 1894. That year work began on the stone building that was to house the enterprise. The main frontage was three‐storey with attic and included process areas, warehouse and office space. The single‐storey 40,000 square foot weaving shed was built with a north‐light roof on cast‐iron columns forming 19 valley bottoms. The shed was constructed in two phases. The first section was erected in 1895. When finances allowed the shed was extended along its Harrison Street frontage in 1901. It was powered by a horizontal tandem compound engine, Prudence, by Roberts of Nelson housed in an engine house to the south east corner. Driving a 14’ flywheel the engine originally produced 350 horsepower. Adjacent was the boiler house which originally housed an 8’ 6” Lancashire boiler, with an economiser, by Tinker, Shenton and Co. of Hyde. Coal would be obtained from the nearby Bank Hall colliery.

The mill lodge was constructed to the south of the site to provide water and the chimney built in red brick. A stone and brick stable block was erected to house the mill’s four horses. The 36” wide ‘grey cloth’ produced by the mill would need to be taken down into Burnley or elsewhere for ﬁnishing.

The company began by installing around 900 single shuttle Lancashire Looms, probably by Harling and Todd of Burnley.

By 1901 enough funds were raised to install a second boiler again purchased from Tinker, Shenton and Co. At this time another economiser was ﬁtted. In 1914 the engine was re‐ﬁtted over the Wakes Week break and output increased to 500 HP.

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Fig 2. 1890s Ordnance Survey map

Fig 3. A rather grainy photograph of c.1900 shows the original gable‐ended three‐storey warehouse to Queen Street Mill in the centre background. This from a collection held at Burnley Library.

1918 The three‐storey frontage to Queen Street was badly damaged in a fire in October 1918, it was decided not to rebuild the full three storeys and the block was rebuilt to house preparation processes. Some looms, approximately 100, were removed from the Harrison Street side of the shed and this was altered to provide warehouse space. The engine and boiler houses were unaffected by the fire, however it was decided to rename the engine Peace in honour of those who had died in the recently ended war. At its height the company was the largest concern in Harle Syke with around 1,500 looms although some of these were located in nearby Briercliffe Mill in the 1930s.

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Fig 4. Post 1918 Ordnance Survey map

The map above shows the mill after the 1918 alterations, the Queen Street frontage now contains the present loading bay. Of interest is the adjacent King’s Mill of 1912.

Due to extraordinary ﬁnancial set up of the ﬁrm very little was changed at Queen Street Mill until its closure in 1982.

1980s After closure in 1982 the mill’s significance was recognised and attempts made to find a way to conserve the building. In March 1983 a Project Brief was produced by Burnley Borough Council which envisaged a mix of leasable light industrial units and a Heritage Centre. This altered the internal layout of the shed considerably. Approximately one third of the northern end was divided into small workshops and the southern third of the loom floor was reconfigured to provide visitor facilities. The mill was opened as a tourist attraction in 1986.

By the early 1990s the project was in some diﬃculty but funding was procured which enabled Lancashire County Council to take over the building as part of the present Museum Service. A further refurbishment followed in the mid‐1990s and the mill reopened to visitors in its present state in 1997. The complex not only retains original looms driven by steam power but also ancillary machinery including pirn winders, cylinder sizers and a drawing‐in frame.

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Fig 5 Suggested Phases of Queen Street MIll

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2.2 Queen Street Mill

2.2.1 Weaving Mill Development ‐ General As already stated much of the industrial development of Harle Syke was encouraged by groups of handloom weavers facing unemployment. The provision of either room and power mills or compact weaving concerns lent itself well to either entrepreneurs or small workers’ cooperatives with limited capital. Powerloom weaving in the cotton industry had been introduced as early as the 1820s and by the late 1850s most of the handloom weavers had disappeared. This mechanisation allowed the establishment of specialised weaving ﬁrms. Initial costs were low compared to other branches of the industry as the processes required for weaving were simpler. Indeed most concerns could buy yarn in almost ready to weave and few were involved in ﬁnishing beyond checking the woven cloth for faults.

Therefore the weaving mill had a simple form. A warehouse was required to store yarns, warp beams and cloth, a preparation area, for sizing, and a checking area were needed and a shed for the looms. Beyond that all that was required was a power installation comprising engine and boiler houses and a chimney. The introduction of steam power meant mills could be built away from watercourses in which case a small reservoir would be built alongside. The original design of Queen Street Mill had all these components along with office space and a stable and cart shed. As most textile businesses only used rail and water transport indirectly through carriers, they would often be self‐sufficient with their own horse and cart. Most grey cloth produced at Queen Street was carted down into Burnley to be finished.

The steam power plant Early steam power plants comprised two elements the engine itself which drove the machinery and the boiler to raise the steam to drive the engine. Improvements in the mid‐nineteenth century allowed heat from the exhaust gases to pre‐heat the water for the boilers, thus saving energy, through the introduction of an economiser.

The engine house Most early steam engines were of the beam type which required the engine to be incorporated into the building itself for support. With the introduction of the horizontal engine, the most common type by 1870, buildings could be built simply to house the engine, although the house would reﬂect the type of engine installed. Single cylinder engines required buildings of little length or width but larger double cylinder engines required either a broad room for cross‐compound engines or long rooms for tandem‐compound ones. Horizontal engines were less impressive than beam types and to compensate engine houses could be built with some ornamentation and the use of tall, often arched windows continued. Double windows were built for cross‐compound engine houses and single for those holding tandem‐compound types. More decoration was introduced towards the end of the nineteenth century with the introduction of decorative tiles for ﬂoors and internal walls.

Siting of the power plant Already established mills introducing steam power often did so in a piecemeal fashion to suit needs but later mills being built with steam power in mind could be designed much more efficiently. A single power plant could be designed to serve the whole site. In this case the siting of the engine house would be more likely to be influenced by the type of power transmission, either rope drive or shaft drive, chosen. Whilst rope drives were common for multi‐storeyed mills the shaft drive was more suitable for single‐storey sheds. Shaft drives were more efficient where the engine flywheel was directly linked to the transmission system and engine houses were often built on a corner of the building either internal or attached.

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Boiler houses, etc. The housing of boilers was the only function of the boiler house and this usually led to a utilitarian style of building with little or no decoration. Boiler design evolved from the haystack type through the wagon type and by the mid‐nineteenth century to the Cornish, Yorkshire and ubiquitous Lancashire boilers. The siting of the boilers close to the engine was more eﬃcient but for safety reasons housing the high‐ pressure boilers away from the more valuable parts of the mill was also desirable. A compromise was often made by building the engine house between the mill and the boiler house where it acted as a buﬀer. Both detached and attached boiler houses were often single‐storey but drying rooms could be built above the rooms if required.

A common feature of boiler houses was a large opening, either round or square, to allow the installation of prefabricated boilers. Feed water was often stored in a tank on the roof. Internally the boilers were arranged in rows, if more than one, with a space in front, a firing space, from where they could be stoked with coal and ashes removed. The roofs of boiler houses were often of iron to withstand the intense heat generated and also to provide some protection from explosion or fire. The condenser became common to most steam plants during the latter half of the nineteenth century, production of them was dominated by Greens of Wakefield, and these were sited between the boiler and the chimney. Chimneys had two functions. Firstly they removed the exhaust gases from the boilers and secondly they created a draught to improve the burning of the coal in the boiler furnace. Early chimneys were often square but as they were built higher to service improved power plants octagonal or round sections were found to be safer as they offered less wind resistance. After 1900 some chimneys had the name of the mill picked out in white brick. Mill reservoirs also had two functions, firstly to provide the large amount of water the steam plant required if no natural supply was available and secondly they were utilised to receive the hot water condensate from the engines.

Power transmission Early millwrights were tasked with taking the rotative power from the waterwheel to the machinery of the mill. As other more efficient ‘prime movers’, turbines and steam engines, evolved the same fundamental challenge remained. Now mill engineers had to devise ways of transmitting the power to larger more complex mills with increasingly sophisticated machinery. Power transmission can be divided into two stages. The primary stage takes the power from the primary mover to the mill and the secondary stage distributes that power in the working area. The watermill transmitted power by a series of interconnecting shafts and this remained the norm even with the advent of multi‐storey mills until the introduction of the more efficient rope drive. However, single storey weaving sheds could still be effectively powered by the shaft method of transmission.

In weaving sheds with an internal or attached engine house the drive from the prime mover, the ﬁrst motion shaft, was also the main drive shaft and this could run the whole length of the shed supported by brackets securely ﬁxed into ashlar blocks in or projecting from a wall or on cast iron columns. Power then only needed to be transferred to the secondary stage comprising of line shafts or countershafts. Countershafts in sheds were connected to the main drive shaft by bevel wheels. Quite often there was one countershaft for each bay so they could be supported on cast iron columns, an alternative was to support them on hangers from tie beams or valley gutters.

Power was transferred ﬁnally from the countershaft to the individual machines by a belt drive. Drums spaced along the shaft were connected to corresponding drums on the machines by an endless leather belt.

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The Weaving Shed With the introduction of powerloom weaving in the various branches of the textile industry it was found that the single‐storey shed was most suitable for the weaving process. Whilst multi‐storey mills could house the small number of looms in the early part of the nineteenth century it soon became apparent that as larger numbers of looms were introduced the structure of the shed could better withstand the weight and vibration of working looms. Also as sheds were invariably lit from above there was little restriction in the size of the buildings which would otherwise be limited by the need for lighting from side walls. The sheds were utilitarian with little adornment and walls often blind. Internally the roofs were supported by rows of cast‐ iron columns which were also often used to carry line shafting. Whilst different types and shapes of roofs were tried the basic saw tooth profile most associated with weaving sheds became the norm. This form comprised a long, straight covered slope and a scarp slope which included glazing. The roofs were carried on different types of trusses ranging from wood iron to angle iron by the early twentieth century.

Fig 6. Queen Street plan

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2.2.2 Queen Street Mill ‐ Description

Engine House

Exterior The building is rectangular on plan and long and narrow, typical of a purpose‐built engine room built to house a tandem compound engine of the late nineteenth century. It is an attached corner type and located between the boiler room and the weaving shed at the south‐east corner. The fabric is coursed rubble sandstone with plain ashlar dressings. The roof is blue slate. The house has long, round‐ headed windows in the west and east walls, the former partly blocked. There are four round‐ headed windows in the south wall.

Fig 7. Engine House – East elevation

Fig 8. Engine House – West elevation Storah Architecture Section 1. p. 10 of 33 February 2013 Job Ref: 12-044 Rev: March 2014 CMP Section 1: Conservation Statement: Queen Street Mill, Burnley

Interior The engine is a tandem compound steam engine of 1914, rebuilt from parts of an earlier engine of 1895 by Roberts of Nelson. Originally it was a 350HP engine named Prudence. It was rebuilt by adding Corliss valves with 16 in. and 32 in. bore cylinders and 4 ft. stroke and output was increased to 500HP. The 14 ft. ﬂywheel runs at 68 rpm and drives banks of looms in the weaving shed by direct drive taken from the crankshaft. There is a Roberts twin cylinder barring engine. After the rebuild the engine was renamed ‘Peace’ The engine is in excellent condition, runs regularly and is still in its original position.

Internally the room is built to one and a half storeys to allow the primary drive to be taken from the engine directly to the overhead drive shafts of the weaving shed.Access from the street is by a short ﬂight of stairs.

The room is decorated with typical tiles of the period to around head height. here is an overhead girder type hoist that continues externally above the window on the east elevation. This may be original.

Fig 9. Interior of the engine house

Fig 10. Engine and main drive through drive box

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The Boiler House

Fig 11. The boiler house from the south‐east

Exterior The boiler house is gable ended and also rectangular on plan. It is built of random coursed sandstone with plain ashlar dressings. The east elevation has a large, square doorway with sliding doors at ground level to facilitate the installation of the pre‐fabricated boilers. Above is a rectangular window, there are four similar openings at the left end of the south elevation and another in the west elevation. The building has a blue slate roof for three‐quarters of its length. The ﬁnal section of roof at the west end has an iron plate water tank by iron‐makers Keighley of Burnley which holds feed water for the boilers.

Interior There are two 8 ft. 6in. Lancashire boilers by Tinker, Shenton and Co. Ltd. of Hyde. One dates from the original build of 1895 and other was added in 1901. Both were altered to automatic ram stoking systems in 1962. The 1901 boiler has now been returned to manual stoking and is used to drive the engine. To the west end is an economiser house holding two economisers by Greens of Wakeﬁeld. Feed water is fed from the roof storage tank through one of the 120‐tube economisers into the boiler. Attached to the west end is the brick ﬂue to the chimney.

The roof is of king - post truss construction. The walls are rubble‐built un‐rendered but whitewashed. Inside the main doorway there is a gantry walk giving access to the boilers and through to the economiser room at the west end. A door in the south wall leads down a short ﬂight of steps to the ﬁring place and coal storage area.

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Fig 12. Interior of the boiler house

Fig 13. Brick ﬂue between boiler house and chimney

Chimney The 37m (121 ft.) red‐ brick circular chimney lies immediately to the west of the engine and boiler houses. The top 7m has been rebuilt and it is reinforced with metal strapping. It bears the words ‘Queen Street Mill’.

Reservoir The reservoir or lodge lays to the south it is approximately 60m by 25m. Water is collected from the shed roof and fed into the lodge by the fall‐pipes on the south elevation. A 1950s Weir pump lifts the water into the storage tank.

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Weaving Shed and attached warehouse

Exterior

Warehouse As originally built the main elevation to Queen Street was a rectangular, three‐storey, gable‐ ended warehouse and oﬃce block with possible attic space. It was rebuilt in 1918 to two‐storeys. It is of coursed rubble sandstone construction with a plain ashlar corbel band above. There are fourteen rectangular windows with plain ashlar surrounds visible with others obscured by the loading bay extension. The roof is part north-light. Pitched either side with a blue slate covering with the central section north-lit.

Fig 14. East Elevation of the mill rebuilt in 1918

Interior The warehouse block also had space for preparation processes. There was a weft department, a winding and beam department and a sizing department as well as office space. After the fire of 1918 the upper floors were not rebuilt and the block was reconfigured. Winding and preparation was carried out on the ground floor and around 100 looms removed from the north‐east corner of the weaving shed and the space adapted for the warehouse. The building still contains machinery for the preparation processes. There are pirn winders,a beaming frame, a cylinder sizer and a drawing‐in frame. The room also contains a Royce generator introduced around the time of the First World War. This provided electricity to the immediate area and the Engine House.

Power was transmitted to this building directly oﬀ the primary drive shaft in the weaving shed by means of a rope pulley system that now directly drives the cylinder sizer. Power is then transferred the length of the building by a system of line shafts and belt transfers.

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Fig 15. Rope pulley wheel and drive box to engine house

Fig 16. Rope drive to sizer

Fig 17. Belt transfer between line shafts

The south end of this area is taken up by the sizer and other ancillary machinery there is also the Tackler’s cabin. The next area is an open storage space with a ramp through a large sliding door to the loading bay. The ﬁnal area at the north is the warehouse formed from a section of the weaving shed. The roof here is north‐lit. A door in the east wall leads through to the toilets in the next section but whose cisterns are in this room. The drive shafts continue in this room but only one length now remains carried on beam hangers. Storah Architecture Section 1. p. 15 of 33 February 2013 Job Ref: 12-044 Rev: March 2014 CMP Section 1: Conservation Statement: Queen Street Mill, Burnley

Fig 18. Toilet cisterns on east wall of warehouse

Fig 19. Interior of the warehouse

Loading bay and oﬃce

Fig 20. The west elevation of the 1918 loading bay

Exterior A one‐storey, gable‐ended loading bay of similar construction to the rebuilt warehouse, also of 1918 is built against its north end. The pitched roof is of blue slate. To the south elevation is a large loading door. The east wall has a double door, one large, rectangular window and two rectangular with square mullions. The dressings are plain ashlar sandstone. There is a plain ashlar band at sill level and another at eaves level with a plain corbel band above. The north end of the east elevation on Queen Street is part of the weaving shed.

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Interior This building consists of a loading bay, an oﬃce and entrance and toilets. The toilets are open-air with roofs over the WCs but not over the men’s urinals. The loading bay is built directly against the original external wall of the mill.

Fig 21. Interior of the loading bay

Fig 22. Ramp and access door to loading bay

Weaving shed

External The large, single‐storey, square on plan, approximately 170 m by 160 m (560 by 20ft), Weaving shed is built of coursed sandstone rubble walling. The north elevation is a blind wall with protruding cast‐iron fall‐pipes from the roof at head height. The west elevation has a loading door but the rest was obscured at the time of inspection, there appears to be a toilet block of unknown age to south end. The south elevation overlooks the mill lodge and its cast‐iron fall‐pipes, similar to those on the north wall, feed the reservoir. There are ﬁve rectangular windows with plain surrounds to the west end. There are two doorways to the east end the right of which forms the main entry to the museum.

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Fig 23. North elevation of the weaving shed

Fig 24. West elevation of the weaving shed

Fig 25. South elevation of the weaving shed

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Fig 26. The weaving shed in 1982 on the mill’s closure. Burnley Library Collection.

The roof is a typical saw tooth, north‐lit roof of a weaving shed. It is formed by blue slate covered slopes and glazed scarps. Detail above is taken from a 1984 photograph held at Burnley Library.

Interior - General

Fig 27. The weaving shed in 1982 on the mill’s closure. Burnley Library Collection.

As originally built the shed was built for 990 40 in. single shuttle overpick looms by either Pembertons or Harling and Todd of Burnley. These were driven by overhead line shafts. They occupied the full ﬂoor until 1918 when the north corner, ‘the parlour’, was emptied for the warehouse. The looms were arranged in sets of six, eight or ten and were atypical in that they were arranged longitudinally rather than across the weaving shed. There are still over 300 original looms in situ attached to original drive shafts.

Power is transferred directly from the engine ﬂywheel through the drivebox in the junction wall between the engine house and shed. This main drive shaft is carried on robust cast‐iron corbels built directly into the east wall of the shed. These corbels continued across the east end of the shed until the original end of the junction wall between the shed and the warehouse. The last length of the main shaft is carried on six cast iron columns that would have been in the north‐east part of the loom shed. These columns are probably part of the extension of c.1901. Large bevel wheels on the corbels and columns transfer the drive to cross shafts carried on columns and hangers from the roof valleys to the looms.

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Fig 28. Corbels set in the shed wall carry the main drive and bevel wheels for power transfer

Fig 29. Main drive shaft carried along the east wall of the shed

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Fig 30. Cast‐iron columns carry the main drive in the extended north part of the shed

Fig 31. Encased bevel wheels transfer power to the cross or counter shafts in the shed

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Fig 32. Cross shafts carried on both columns and beam hangers transfer power by belt drive to the looms

Interior - Entrance foyer, café area and oﬃces Since the mill’s closure in 1982 the weaving shed has been adapted for both museum facilities and workshop units. The latter which occupy the northern third of the shed are rented out. The entrance to the museum and its various ancillary components take up the southern third of the shed whilst the central third is retained as a weaving shed and used for live displays of working machinery.

The museum section is formed by a inserted block wall running west to east. The area is further subdivided by other inserted walls. The main drive shaft, which is still live, runs along the east wall to which some dead sections of countershafts are still attached. The original iron cast columns are retained in the whole area.

To the right of the entrance is the staircase to the engine house. Immediately in front of this is a drive system running back through the wall to the engine house and possibly through to the boiler house. This could have been an inserted drive to the automatic hopper feeders to the boilers. Past the engine house stairway is the door through to the warehouse and processing room.

Fig 33. Café area looking east towards the museum entrance on the right

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Fig 34. Retained cast‐iron columns in the portioned oﬃce area in the south‐west corner of the shed

Fig 35. Retained columns and section of dead shafting in industrial units area

Interior - Industrial Units

The northern third of the weaving shed is divided into small industrial units by inserted modern walls. This area was not fully investigated for this report but the eastern most inserted wall of this section now forms a corridor to the east in which the six columns carrying the main drive shaft are located. At the northern end of this corridor there are two small storerooms.

Interior - Working Display area The central section of the weaving shed is retained intact. This is occupied by the banks of working looms. Against the east wall the main drive shaft is carried on the corbels previously described. Doors in this wall lead into the warehouse area. Doors in the western wall lead into toilets which may be original. The northern and southern walls of this area are the inserted modern dividing walls. Doors in these walls lead into the divided areas. A small oﬃce is retained in the north east of this section.

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Fig 36. Toilet entrance in shed

Fig 37. Oﬃce in shed

Fig 38. The main elevation of the stable block

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Stable block The stable block was built in the ﬁrst phase of the building of the mill in 1894. It was built to hold the ﬁrm’s four horses. Historic sources suggest several of the mill’s employees then left and purchased a steam wagon to provide haulage for the mill. This wagon was taken for war work in 1914 and the mill reverted to horse transport. By the 1920s motor transport had been introduced.

External Probably a two-phase, pitch-rooofed build, one half in stone and one in red brick. Two doors to the Queen Street frontage and one rectangular window at ground level and another door at ﬁrst ﬂoor level to the hayloft above. ‘Midden’ windows to other elevations. The building has been extensively rebuilt.

Internal Two separate rooms at ground ﬂoor level, one restored as a stable for display purposes and the other used for storage. One room hayloft over.

Fig 39. The interior of the restored stable block

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3 SIGNIFICANCE

3.1 Introduction This section assesses the relative significance of the complex and its key significance values. ‘Conservation Principles’ (English Heritage 2008) sets out a range of heritage values that can be used to establish the significance of a building or space. These include evidential value (the physical aspects of a building that yield evidence about the past), historical value (the extent to which a building is associated with or illustrative of historic events or people), aesthetic value (includes design, visual, landscape and architectural value) and communal value (includes social and commemorative value and local identity). These values may be tangible, for example, the listed building grade of the building or they may be intangible, for example, the site’s association with a past event or group of people.

Significance is a concept for measuring the cultural value of a place, using judgement to assess the place and its different aspects in a hierarchy. The concept was first developed in Australia by James Semple Kerr, to assist with the management of cultural assets. It has been adopted by the Heritage Lottery Fund and in adapted forms by organisations such as The National Trust and English Heritage.

The accepted levels of signiﬁcance are:-

• Exceptional – important at national and international levels, reﬂected in statutory designations, such as Grade I listed buildings and scheduled ancient monuments.

• High – important at regional or sometimes a higher level, e.g. Grade II listed buildings.

• Medium – important at a local level, and possibly at a regional level, for example for group value.

• Low – of no more than local value

• Negative or intrusive features – features which in their present form detract from the value of the site.

3.2 Queen Street Mill Queen Street Mill is important for its evidential, historical and communal values. It also holds some aesthetic value as its setting typifies the regional landscape. The largely unaltered state of its buildings and layout is a good example of steam-powered weaving sheds of the late nineteenth century that were so important to the Burnley area in particular. The survival of many of the mill’s original features and much of its machinery provides important evidence of the functions and processes of the weaving sector of the Cotton industry. Very few weaving sheds of the area survive certainly not those which with much of their machinery intact. The fact that Queen Street Mill retains its steam engine in working order and driving original machinery probably makes it unique. Its significance is reflected in the power unit’s designation as a Scheduled Ancient Monument. This can be considered to be of Exceptional significance

The complex also has communal value through association with the once important local textile industry and the collective memories of former workers, staﬀ, locals and visitors.

The historical and evidential value attached to the machinery at Queen Street Mill is reﬂected in its designation as a Designated Collection.

Assessment of Buildings on the site

Assessment of Significance-Exterior A typical small weaving concern of the late nineteenth century there are three identifiable phases to the building of the mill. However at each stage the same materials were used. The walls are of dressed sandstone rubble walling belonging to the local Carboniferous Coal Measures Group. There are some plain dressings to the building. The roof is of blue slate. The materials match those of the other buildings in the Conservation Area and form a homogenous group. The flue and chimney are built of red brick, a common occurrence even in stone areas.

The building is generally considered to be of High significance. However, as the engine and boiler houses and chimney and flue are scheduled as a Scheduled Ancient Monument they are considered to be of Exceptional significance.

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Assessment of Signiﬁcance – Interior

The Engine and Boiler Houses The engine house is as built and still contains its steam engine connected to the intact power transmission of the mill. The boiler house also remains as built with some repairs to the roof. The boilers are the original boilers of 1895 and 1901, one of which is retained in working order. The interiors of the building are considered to be of Exceptional signiﬁcance.

Weaving shed and attached warehouse

Warehouse The southern area is part of the 1918 rebuild on the site of the original block fronting Queen Street. The roof to this section is carried on a single line of cast-iron columns. The north section is formed by part of the weaving shed extension of 1901. The original fabric throughout is intact. The drive is transmitted to the rooms via a pulley wheel oﬀ the main drive shaft at the south end. It is then taken the length of the rooms by further drive shafts and belt transfer. All this seems to be original. There is also a donkey engine. Some machinery may be original. This area is considered to be of High Signiﬁcance

Loading Bay, office and toilets This area was built against the Queen Street elevation. Its fabric is original with some repairs to the roof. The rest of the area consisting of office space and toilets has not been inspected. It is understood that this section is in its original state and will form a part of the display area in the future. At present this area is considered to be of High significance

Weaving shed The south section is formed by an inserted concrete block dividing wall running east-west. To the west the area is further sub-divided into office, cafe and kitchen space. The original cast-iron columns survive and the roof is original although repaired in sections. To the east the room houses the main drive shaft carried on the wall on cast-iron columns. A drive box in the south wall carries a drive shaft into the engine house also at the east end. This end is considered to be of High significance. The rest of the area is considered to be of Medium significance as although altered its original form and materials survive.

The central section of the weaving shed remains as a working shed with original looms in situ some of which are used for working displays. All the elements of the shed appear to be intact and the fabric original. This area is considered to be of High signiﬁcance

A further inserted concrete block wall forms the northern section which approximates to the 1901 northern extension of the weaving shed. Again the area is further sub-divided, this time into light industrial units. A corridor is formed at the east end which holds the original cast-iron columns carrying the main drive shaft. This area is considered to be of High signiﬁcance. The rest of the area despite its alterations retains its overall original form and materials and can be considered of Medium signiﬁcance

3.3 Assessment of Significance – Landscape and curtilage On two elevations the mill fronts onto the street, namely Queen Street and Harrison Street. The west side of the mill is fenced off and was once the boundary between the mill and Primrose Mill, now demolished. Only to the south is there property belonging to the mill. This area contains the mill lodge and the stable block. As these form an integral part of the mill the area is considered to be of High significance.

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3.4 Overall Significance of the mills as a whole Architectural and Landscape Significance The architecture of Queen Street Mill is utilitarian and simple reflecting the fact the building was built by a workers’ initiative with limited capital. The only embellishment is to the engine house in the form of tall round-arch windows but these too fulfil a practical need of lighting a long narrow building. The style of the rest of the mill is typical of a weaving shed of the period with plain blind walls on two elevations and limited fenestration on the other. The main elevation on Queen Street was rebuilt with limited decoration in the form of a plain corbel band that seems to be copying the opposite elevation on the 1912 King Street Mill. The building’s architecture is considered to be of High significance the mill being an unaltered typical weaving shed of the period.

Townscape Significance The setting of Queen Street Mill with its large buildings sat amongst smaller workers’ houses is reminiscent of many industrial communities of the region that have now been lost. The fact that the village still retains many of the elements of an early–twentieth century textile community is reflected in its designation as a Conservation Area. The setting of the mill has a High Townscape significance

Historical Significance The complex has an historical significance with its association to the development of the regional textile trade and therefore to the development of the area. Has the textile industry has now largely disappeared it retains a historical significance to the collective memory of the community. Helmshore Mills has a High significance, as a regional social and historical point of reference.

Statutory Designation The power unit at Queen Street Mill is scheduled as a Scheduled Ancient Monument (No 10005085) as ‘Queen Street Mill Engine’. The monument comprises the engine and boiler houses, the ﬂue and the chimney. The rest of the mill is listed, grade 1. The complex lies within a Conservation Area.

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4 SCOPE FOR CHANGE The buildings and site are considered historically significant and as such the engine and boiler are protected as a scheduled ancient monument. The remainder of the site has also statutory protection as it affects the setting and curtilage of the protected heritage asset. This does not prevent alteration or change to the buildings or their curtilage, though places obligations on the owners and others in respect of this. There may be a need for change which is acceptable, provided it is justified and informed by a full understanding of the building and its significance as a heritage asset. This potential for change must be viewed in accordance with the Council’s own planning policies, together with the government’s advice in The National Planning Policy Framework (particularly Section 12). The NPPF, para 128.requires that ”In determining applications, local planning authorities should require an applicant to describe the significance of any heritage assets affected, including any contribution made by their setting”. This report has been produced to assist in managing the future of the Building, by indicating which elements or spaces are most significant and where there may be scope for change.

4.1 Areas of exceptional and high signiﬁcance The areas of highest signiﬁcance are the technological features, the boiler and engine houses, and the weaving shed and the boilers, engine, machinery and drive system within the mill. These lead to and are seen in the context of the internal environment, and care should be taken to preserve the qualities of these spaces.

Also of high significance are the external appearance of the building; its contribution to the townscape and landscape setting. The external elevations are of high significance and are highly vulnerable to the impact of change owing to their robust and restrained style. Care will be required to ensure that any internal alterations do not adversely affect the character of the exterior,

4.3 Areas of Medium signiﬁcance Subject to review, there is scope for alteration and change within the interior of the building beyond the boiler and engine houses if this is necessary and justiﬁed, though care should be taken to ensure that no important features are lost, and that the understanding of the building is not diminished.

4.4 Areas of low or no signiﬁcance or of negative impact Areas with the greatest scope for change are the areas which have had modern intervention or additions. Future development work should be carried out to enhance the listed building and its setting.

5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS This conservation audit is a summary of background research and a visual inspection of the complex. The audit is intended to provide information for discussion and to ascertain signiﬁcance through the involvement and input of stakeholders.

This is not an exhaustive assessment of the options of the building, which should be considered as part of a wider ranging appraisal, with the feasibility of preferred options fully investigated. The levels of signiﬁcance identiﬁed in this report may however feed into and guide any proposals for alteration, refurbishment or repair.

It is intended that this audit is developed into a full Conservation Management Plan and so it should not be considered a ﬁnished document.

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BUILDING SCHEDULE

Introduction This section of the Conservation Management Plan considers the signiﬁcance of speciﬁc rooms, elements and ancillary buildings and makes recommendations for the mill complex as a heritage asset.

General Advice One of the major threats to the signiﬁcance and historic integrity of a building is the cumulative eﬀect of many small scale changes.

Where works are proposed, care should be taken to ensure that small interventions over time do not collectively undermine and destroy the character and historic signiﬁcance of building elements or spaces. Care should be taken where specifying or carrying out works to ensure that historic fabric is not lost or damaged. Often damage occurs through lack of consideration of the historic fabric, which would be avoidable if greater planning was carried out when commissioning or starting the work on site. For example, damage to ornate plasterwork during of cables could be avoided through rerouting via less sensitive areas or in some cases by use of wireless networking.

When carrying out repairs, care should be taken to respect the original structure. Appropriate, sympathetic materials should be used. The breathability and permeability of the structure should be considered, with a preference for breathable paints, or lime plasters and mortars in place of impermeable materials.

Building Elements