John Atkinson of Cragg Vale and Sowerby Bridge

[DollyH]

I'm trying to find out anything about John Atkinson who established a textile manufacturing business at Cragg Vale in the early 19th century.  He then married Sally.  From 1855, the business moved to a number of mills in and around Sowerby Bridge.  Anything about John, Sally, their family or the business would be of interest.

Thanks

Dolly

 

[Gordon Dee.]

'ello, Dolly,
In the 1851 census for Halifax, there are FOUR - ATKINSON families, all living at Turvin Mill, Blackstone Edge Road, Cragg Vale.
Joseph, with wife Ruth, and 1 child
Robert, with wife Sally, and 5 children
BUT...  TWO John's, both with wife Sarah !!
one has no children,
the other has 3 children, PLUS Mary, mother-in-Law.

If you would like to send me a personel message, with your e-mail address, I will scan a copy of this Census sheet direct to you.

This address is a few miles from Sowerby Bridge (may be 7 or and it is almost on top of the Pennine Hills, very near the Yorkshire/Lancashire Border.

Regards,
Gordon.

[Malcolm Bull]

Dolly

There is quite a bit about John Atkinson's business in a book entitled Sowerby Bridge in the TEMPUS Images of England  series. [ISBN 0-7524-3772-0].  This has a picture of John & Sally and images of some of their mills in and around Sowerby Bridge.  The text also says that the business was John Atkinson & Sons so the JA with children - which Gordon found - seems a likely candidate.

Incidentally, the Cragg Vale mills were infamous for their child labour records.  I wonder if JA was one of these!

Regards

Malcolm Bull

[DollyH]

Thank you Gordon and Malcolm.

I'll try to get hold of the book.

Dolly

[dave the tyke]

You might even find a picture of Cragg Vale mills on here
http://calderdale.gov.uk/wtw/index.html

a lot of their info seems to have been 'lifted' from Malcolm's site

[Malcolm Bull]

Yup!

To be quite honest, Dave, that really p***ed me off and was a part of the main reason why I dropped my Calderdale Companion.

Calderdale Council had taken huge chunks of my material and used it without asking and without credit on their Weaver to Web site.  I subsequently learned that Halifax Reference Library also used my website quite extensively to answer queries and search for material, and when I first withdrew my website, some woman rang up from Halifax Branch leading with me to put it back up.  However, when I approached the Head of Halifax Reference Libraries to enquire whether - from time to time - it would be possible to borrow books from their Local History Section so that I could transcribe stuff at home rather than having to make notes in the Library, they said that this would not be possible without applying in writing and undergoing a Risk-Assessment for each individual volume.

The ironical part was that Brighouse Reference Library, where I enquired about borrowing Reference Books, appear to have had a number of books stolen, and they don't appear to know what they have or where it is.

So mainly, and I suppose in a fit of spite, I pulled the plug on the lot.

Regards

Malcolm Bull

[DollyH]

Malcolm,

I can understand that you felt miffed that the Weaver to Web people ripped off a lot of your stuff.

But if you could ever see it in your way to revive your website, I am sure that I would not be the only one to be grateful.

Perhaps you could bring it back as a pay-per-view system, or so that it could only be accessed by registered users.  I'm not technical enough to know how you could do this, but if you ask on the Technical Help board here, I am quite sure that someone will come up with suggestions.

Perhaps you could arrange for the index pages [which I see are still available] to be visible to everyone so as to entice readers, and then perhaps those who have contributed information or who pay a fee could have access to all the material there.

Just my 1d worth.  Perhaps others have other ideas.

Dolly

[dave the tyke]

The Malcolm Bull appreciation 'society' seems to have hijacked this thread and I apologise for that, however I do think that Dolly's suggestion of a contribution in return for membership sounds like a very good idea. Is your site retrievable Malcolm? The indexing was the best that I have ever come across on any site that I have visited and the content helped me so many times........
Dave

[plum]

I'm trying to find out anything about John Atkinson who established a textile manufacturing business at Cragg Vale in the early 19th century.  He then married Sally.  From 1855, the business moved to a number of mills in and around Sowerby Bridge.  Anything about John, Sally, their family or the business would be of interest.

Thanks

Dolly

 

Hello Dolly   I have been trying to get in touch with you as i live local to the area & i also know of JOHN ATKINSONS as i used to live just up the road from the mill.  I also have in my collection of  as my wife calls it useless junk a book that was published by stotts printers of halifax for JOHN ATKINSONS and it gives the family tree from the 1700s when he came to CRAGG VALE and started up his mill, it also has a few photos of some of the main men who where involved in running the business and of the oter mills that he bought, WILLOW HALL WEST MILL OLD HOUSE MILL& HIS MAIN BASE MILL IN SOWERBY BRIDGE WATSON MILL, most of this has been pulled down and RAM BATHROOMS took over and built new sheds  on the old mill site+ THEY BUILT ON THE OLD RAILWAY TRACK this went to rishworth last stop before you went over blackstone edge into lancashire. they had the water rights off the land that they took over when they bought  HULLEN EDGE FARM at norland, one of the main men was called SUTCLIFFE he had some daughters and they built them a swimming pool this was filled with water from the farm water rights and as a lad we used to use the pool mind you we where soon chased away if we where seen but we went back as soon as they went.  IF you want one of the two books that ive got and you are in halifax area you can have one. if you want to ring me 07976515892  if you have questions i might be able to give you answers. i got in touch with a chap called bull who is a site user he lives quite near me said he would ring and come to see the book and one i have of the account of the builing works etc, this might be the only one arround.

                        yours plum.