Melksham Times Past

A column about days gone by in Melksham by local historian Lisa Ellis

Factory accidents and under-age employment

Warning: This article contains graphic content that might upset some readers.

Weaving by individuals in their homes had been the standard way to produce cloth, and this included the entire family.

The change, from hand-loom in cottages to power-loom in factories, was incorporated gradually between 1820 and 1870.

Cloth manufacturer Phillips and Smith operated in Avon Mill until 1861 after the death of Edward Phillips and the retirement of his brother, John Ledyard Phillips. Thomas Matravers took over this business after their Westbury factory was destroyed by fire, and ran it until his death in 1895. We now know this site as the former home of Avon India Rubber Company, later Cooper Tires.

A tragic factory accident happened at Phillips and Smith on Monday, 17th September 1849, when 13-year-old Susannah Ferris was caught in a machine and transfixed until the engine could be stopped.

Ferris was employed as a feeder to a scribbling engine, the first part of a series of machines that delivered wool and prepared it for further processing, like carding, which opens and separates wool fibres, removing knots, dirt and other impurities. This was essential for preparing wool for spinning.

As part of the operation, Ferris took off the strap on one side, but it also came off from the opposite side. According to the coroner’s inquest, in attempting to seize the strap to put over the pulley, it doubled and caught Ferris by the leg and drew her up to the second floor, where it confined her to the drum, striking her head against the joists at each revolution. When the machinery was stopped, she fell to the floor, quite dead from the severe injuries at the back part of her head.

When we hear about shoddy work being done, we typically think of something that was of inferior quality and the person behind its construction was careless. But in manufacturing, “shoddy” referred to materials that were recycled, such as wool or fabric. A flock factory would specialise in applying small fibres to a surface to produce a velvety texture, for instance, on clothing or blankets or wallpaper. Although not so much the fashion these days, you’ll find hobbyists on Etsy who flock small animal toys.

In the 1860s, Wheeler and Herbert ran a shoddy mill in the Ark Factory, which was located in the area now occupied by Sainsbury’s, but near the river. Their factory closed the night of Friday 10th  March 1865 when a “tremendous conflagration burst forth.” Although conveniently located next to the Avon, because of the inflammable materials used to prepare wool from old woollen fabrics, fire spread rapidly and the entire premises was enveloped in flames.

Also known as “The Flock Factory”, the fire was just the last of the accidents that befell the business. In 1863, William Butler, aged 19 and living on King Street with his widowed father, had been tending to a wringer that was driven by two steam engines. He apparently had not taken the necessary precaution to fasten the openings after filling the water level. The cap bearings flew open and parts of the machine were thrown out of gear. Butler was hit in the head, arm and leg and his death was instantaneous. Owner Herbert was standing within two feet at the time but escaped serious injury.

Child labour existed to varying extents throughout history, and with the Industrial Revolution, the firm of Wheeler and Herbert was no exception to this type of employment.

Beanacre lad, Mark Dicks (or Dix), aged 12, was taking his break during his dinner hour at Wheeler and Herbert to fish along the river; something he did as a habit while the other workers went home to eat. On the Tuesday afternoon, on 3rd June, 1862, he hadn’t returned to work and his body was later found drowned in the river and determined to be an accident.

Following the closure of Wheeler and Herbert, Hurn Bros Ltd took over the site after moving their timber mill from near the train station. In 1896, the company was fined for offences against the Factory Act by employing Sidney George Clark, 13 and Henry James Bourton, 14, both under the age allowed and not having been first examined by the certifying surgeon, Dr Keir.

The Ark Mills timber business suffered a catastrophic loss due to fire during the evening of Tuesday, 24th February 1913, likely caused by a carelessly dropped match. They rebuilt and closed in 1988,  marking more than 450 years of the Hurn family’s association with Melksham.