18th May, 2007
Rise of the Mill Owners
When considering the more privileged inhabitants of Wigan in the mid-nineteenth century, an interesting group of people come to the fore. The increasing mechanisation of the textile industry led to the rise of the factory system. In the parish of All Saints, in 1838, there were 37 cotton and 2 flax mills, employing a total of 6,537 workers.
With the rise of the factory system came the phenomenon of the mill owners who rose from humble beginnings. Among these were J. and W. Eckersley, (owners of Swan Meadow Mill, erected 1821-2), William Woods, (Trencherfield Mill, 1822-23) and Thomas Darwell (Pepper Mill).
Swan Meadow and Trencherfield Mills were later rebuilt and are still in existence, although they no longer function as mills.
Humble Origins
Although most of the early mill owners rose from humble beginnings, they were able to amass fortunes by carefully investing in the burgeoning textile industry. William Woods, for example, left £300,000 when he died in 1841. This is a tidy sum of money in the 21st century - in 1841 it was a vast accumulation of wealth.
With wealth came influence. Thomas Darwell, owner of the Pepper and Sovereign Mills, was mayor of Wigan in 1823 and in 1840. He lived for a while in Ince Hall, and later the even more prestigious Standish Hall.
William Dodd said this about the Wigan mill owners in 1842:
"On looking into the origin of the manufacturing firms in this town, I find that the masters have, almost to a man, begun with nothing, and risen by little and little, till many of them have got to be very wealthy. One man, Mr. WILLIAM WOOD(s), died in the early part of this year, worth, as stated in the newspapers of the day, 300,000pounds, nearly all of which had been acquired by the factory system."
"As men of figures they are often almost without a parallel; they can tell to a nicety how much money will be gained by reducing their hands 6d per head throughout the factory, or to what the fraction of a farthing per pound or per yard, upon the goods produced, will amount. To their ability in calculating these minute details, may be attributed much of their success as accumulators of wealth."
Lack of Care
It would be nice to think that these, nouveau riche mill owners remembered their humble origins and looked after their workers. Unfortunately the opposite is true. Three of Wigan's mills in 1823 were found to be in a "most abominable and filthy state". In 1828 William Woods and Thomas Darwell, then joint owners of the Sovereign Mill, were reprimanded for making children work 16 hours a day. So unpopular was Thomas Darwell that some of his workers conspired to murder him. The plot, however, was never carried out.
There were many dangers involved when working with mill machinery. Accidents involving the loss of limbs were common at this time but compensation was rarely forthcoming.
William Dodd, reporting on the treatment of children in textile factories for Lord Ashley in 1842, lists several workers who had lost their arms to mill machinery and had received little or no compensation.
Clogs to Clogs
"From clogs to clogs in three generations" was a saying often applied to the mill owning families of the time. Thomas Darwell made the double leap in one lifetime. His business eventually failed and he ended his life in poverty.
The descendants of William Woods, however, managed to run the family business successfully for several generations. The Wigan Observer of 20th May, 1882 mentions the death of Henry Woods, senior partner in the firm of William Woods and Sons - Trencherfield Mills. Henry was the grandson of William.
The Eckersleys from the Swan Meadow Mill were also successful. Nathanial, son of James, one of the founders of the business, was a councillor for 39 years. He was mayor of Wigan in 1851-53 and 1870-74 and was elected MP in 1866 and 1883.