Sir Richard Arkwright`s second mill Masson Matlock Derbyshire 1783

As a retired apprentice trained mechanical engineer I marvelled at his Mill  when we visited and had a close look at all the various heavy machinery involved. While I was taking the photos I became aware at just how much light came in the many large windows and I realised of course no elecric light in 1783. I was also impressed that in those days he was able to visualise the river Derwent giving him ten times more power than his first mill  for the water to run this one. If you are that way it`s well worth a visit as is Cromford mill his first and Chatsworth

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The mill still produces a limited number of fabrics for sale. The machines are all belt driven the noise must have been awful with the belts slapping on the pulleys with the metallic clang of the machines themselves, no H and S in those days, my grandmother worked in a Derbyshire mill as a child of 10 or 11 she was small enough to reach parts of the machines the adults couldn`t. 

Complex machinery and very very noisy

Carding machine

Overseer`s office

River Derwent the weir constructed by Arkwright

The largest collection of bobbins in the world each one has a coloured reference dot