Saturday 25 August 2012 Speke Hall & Quarry Bank Mill

After leisurely breakfast off to Speke Hall, a Tudor house built between 1530 & 1598. It has only had 2 families as owners in it's history, the Norres & then the Watt family. Something I didn't know was that in tudor times the wood was natural, it was the Victorians who painted the wooden beams & bits black.  Sounds like a large extension of the house was financed by the slave trade, now there's a surprise!  The house is full of heavily-carved dark wooden furniture, & of course dark wooden panelled walls. I reminded me of Carrick Hill, infact it could have been a house such as Speke Hall which was the source of the innards of Carrick Hill. 

Speke Hall

Lunch at the tearooms & then onto the next one which was completely different - Quarry Bank Mill - a restored Georgian mill from the industrial revolution,  a 5 story red brick factory, really a showcase of  working conditions in a big cotton mill. The complex was complete with an Apprentice house, for the child labour - probably orphaned children who came from the workhouse, the apprentices were not paid, just board & lodging.

Georgian Cotton Mill - Quarry Bank

Really good display of the combing, the spinning, the weaving, the powergeneration by giant waterwheel . The workers were doing 12-13 hour days 6 days a week,  ... we don't know we're alive.  The mill owner also had built workers cottages for his labour force.

Funny thing about both these properties was that they were right next to airports. Speke Hall was next to John Lennon Airport, Liverpool....yes they have named their airport after him... and Quarry Bank Mill next to Manchester Airport.    (As we skirted Manchester Airport I had a flashback, yes only to yesterday & not a pleasant one, of negotiating the airport to get to the car rental return - 5th floor of the longstay carpark, it really is a miracle I got there!
What a luxury, just hop on the bus & be carted around, am loving it!!