Silk
Mill
(Written
by Wayne Anthony & Richard Felix)
England's first factory was built here in 1717, on the banks of the River
Derwent. John Lombe, who was possibly the world's first industrial spy
travelled to Livorno in Italy to steal the patterns for making silk- throwing
machines, spending his days working the machines and at night, when he
should have been sleeping, copying down their plans. These he carefully
placed in bales of silk destined for England. The plans were then intercepted
by his father's agents and brought to Derby.
The silk-throwing machines were constructed in Derby's old Guildhall and eventually moved to what was the first purpose-built factory in England. Lombe escaped back home but three years later, so the story goes, he was poisoned by an Italian assassin from Livorno, sent over to this country to exact revenge.
The Silk Mill burnt
down in 1910, and all that was saved was the bell tower. It is this tower
which is known to be haunted by a little boy who was kicked down the stairs
by one of the overseers for not working hard enough.
Children as young as seven were employed at the silk mill. They worked
from 5am until 7pm. This little boy's cries can still be heard at the
foot of the stairs where he bled to death. On many occasions staff of
what is now Derby's Industrial Museum have gone into the tower, thinking
that there is a child lost, but there is never anyone there. The lift
operates by itself, often going up and down on its own. The Silk Mill
staff check at night before leaving to make sure that no one is in the
lift, as it operates so often in this manner.
The Silk Mill
