Bridge at Cromford Mill

Summary

Early-C18 bridge.

Reasons for Designation

The bridge at Cromford Mill, constructed in the early C18, is listed at Grade I for the following principal reasons:

Historic interest:

* the mill was constructed in the C18 by the entrepreneur Sir Richard Arkwright who was pioneering in his use of water power to mass-produce cotton thread, which came to be of outstanding importance in the development of textile mills;
* for its technological interest as an exceptionally early survival from the first generation of water-powered textile mills which illustrates the wider trends in the history of this industry;
* dubbed the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, the mill complex became the blueprint for factory production, with Arkwright’s factory system replicated internationally.

Architectural interest:

* as a good quality early-C18 bridge with coursed stonework and curved parapet walling.

Group value:

* the C18 buildings survive remarkably well as a group and help to demonstrate the functioning of this early textile mill complex.

History

The development of the cotton industry in the Derwent Valley in the late C18 has been determined as a key precursor to the Industrial Revolution in Britain. This development initially began with the construction of the Silk Mill in Derby in 1721 for the brothers John and Thomas Lombe, which housed machinery for throwing silk, based on an Italian design. However, it was not until Richard Arkwright constructed a water-powered spinning mill at Cromford in 1771, and a second, larger mill in 1776-1777 powered by the Bonsall Brook and the Cromford Sough, that the ‘Arkwright System’ was truly established. This system was a true blueprint for factory production and was soon replicated elsewhere in Britain, and later in other parts of the world. Along the valley, industrial development followed soon after in Belper (1776-1777), Milford (1781) and Darley Abbey (1782), with these four principal industrial settlements articulated by the river Derwent. Into the C19, the mills along the Derwent Valley were limited in their possibility for growth due to topographical constraints and distance from ports through which cotton was imported. This limitation has to an extent ensured their survival. Overall, the landscape created by Arkwright’s factory system remains largely intact.

The construction of the first mill (now known as the Upper Mill or Building 18) at Cromford commenced in 1771. In its original form the building contained 11 bays and was five storeys in height. It was originally powered by an overshot wheel with water brought to it by an aqueduct. The aqueduct would have passed narrowly above the entrance to the building on the east elevation, which is framed by a classical, Gibbs surround. In the 1780s, the mill was extended by 10 metres adding four additional bays at the north end, with a water wheel added to the north gable. The site expanded in this period with the majority of buildings constructed to the east of the first mill.

The bridge at the centre of the main mill yard pre-dates Arkwright’s arrival at Cromford and probably dates to the early C18. The structure bridges the Bonsall Brook and originally carried a road linking Matlock Bath and Cromford known as the Roundabout Way, which was an alternative to the steep turnpike route over Scarthin Rock. After the construction of the first mill at Cromford in 1771 (now known as Building 18), the site soon expanded with a second mill constructed in 1776-77. The construction of this second mill blocked the Roundabout Way. Richard Arkwright subsequently improved the steep route by cutting through a section of Scarthin Rock.

From around 1840 the production of cotton at Cromford ceased due to the lack of an adequate water supply which severely limited production. Thereafter the buildings were put to other uses including a brewery and cheese warehousing, its main uses being as a colour works (1914-1979) and a commercial laundry (1895-1966). A fire in 1929 destroyed the two upper storeys of the Upper Mill, and the building was subsequently re-roofed in asbestos sheeting. The Arkwright Society purchased the site in two phases in 1979 and 1988 and oversaw the restoration of the mill buildings. The site is currently (2023) open to the public.

Details

Early-C18 bridge.

MATERIALS: constructed of ashlar millstone grit.

PLAN: the bridge spans the Bonsall Brook and is oriented roughly north-south.

DESCRIPTION: the bridge is small in scale at roughly 7m in length and has splayed parapet walling topped with curved coping stones. It has a single semi-circular arch spanning the brook with stone voussoirs.

Sources

Books and journals
Hartwell, Clare, Pevsner, Nikolaus, Williamson, Elizabeth, The Buildings of England: Derbyshire, (2016)
Buxton, D, Charlton, C, Cromford Revisited, (2013)

Websites
Derbyshire HER, Cromford Mill Complex, accessed 9 November 2023 from https://www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=MDR3068&resourceID=1023
Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, History of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, accessed 9 November 2023 from http://www.derwentvalleymills.org/discover/derwent-valley-mills-history/
Cromford Mills, Mill History, accessed 9 November 2023 from https://www.cromfordmills.org.uk/learning/mill-history/
UNESCO, Derwent Valley Mills, accessed 9 November 2023 from https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1030/documents/

Other
The Arkwright Society: ‘Sir Richard Arkwright’s Cromford Mills Conservation Statement 2016’
Patrick Strange: ‘Richard Arkwright’s Cromford Mill An Archaeological Archive’, 2008
'The Derwent Valley Mills and Their Communities', The Derwent Valley Mills Partnership, 2011
‘Cromford Mills Master Plan, Volume 3 – Heritage Impact Assessment’, The Arkwright Society, April 2011

End of official list entry

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