- Title:
- Living Linen Interview LL2_R00/85
- Object name(s):
- Sound Recording : Magnetic Tape, Reel; Sound Recording
- Brief description:
- Sound Recording on Reel: Bessbrook Spinning Company. Library Transcript: Transcript. Summary: Like most Bessbrook families the Blacks have a strong association with the linen trade. William's younger brother, Martin, was General Manager at Bessbrook before moving to Blacker's mill. His younger brother Jack was in the spinning and yarn sales end. William entered the mill in 1934 as assistant wages clerk. Prior to leaving school, William had been interviewed by the firm and a position allocated to him on the basis of his performance and abilities. Family reputation was all-important. William's father was held in high esteem and his children were consequently given positions of importance. The Bessbrook Spinning Company consisted of Bessbrook, Craigmore factory, Windsor (The Lake) factory and Glenmore bleach works. All of their produce was marketed by Richardsons Sons & Owden. After a brief period in Rosebank during WWII Mr Black was asked back to Bessbrook. He became weaving manager on the death of George Nelson in 1951. Bessbrook produced a wide range of goods; damasks and plains, household linens, furnishings fabrics and Aero linen. Craigmore produced the rougher type of fabric and tea-towels (average lea 18s). The lake specialised in the fine cambrics and Aero linens (average lea 80s). Sheetings, dress linens and damasks were woven in Bessbrook. Over the 3 sites there were some 1050 looms and between 8 & 900 employees. Weft yarn was occasionally bought from merchants such as Prestons, Cappers and Titteringtons. Bessbrook also did commission weaving, most notably for John Compton of Glenanne and Ewarts. Bessbrook and Windsor operated on coal fired boilers up into the 1950s. Craigmore also had a turbine. Investment was steady. The major cost was the electrification of the works. Quality control was extremely strict. Seconds were disposed of by the warehouse or sold off to the employees at a reduced rate. RSO did a large export business and appointed agents throughout the world. Bessbrook linen adorned the Queen Mary on her maiden voyage. All RSO damask had a lion holding a laurel wreath woven into each corner. The firm used the tradename `Richlin'. Bessbrook was a model village. The Richardson family owned the entire village and provided a number of amenities for the workforce. Bessbrook was not isolated from surrounding towns. Camlough and Newry were both within walking distance. The Company also constructed the Newry Bessbrook tramway, which called at Craigmore en route. Workers also came from surrounding towns to work in the mill. Labour relations in Bessbrook were exceptionally good and characterised by a family environment. In Craigmore the weavers were all women. In Bessbrook, the workforce was mixed because men were required to work the heavy sheeting and damask looms. Experienced weavers were selected to train new starts and were given an allowance to compensate them for their inevitable loss of earnings. Weavers took a great pride in their work. Several boasted that they had never been reprimanded or had cloth rejected. William remained with RSO until 1963. Over those years the market was changing. The closure of South America was particularly punishing. Price became all important and everything was done to save a fraction of a penny. Top quality cloth was no longer in demand. Although the firm remained traditional they became interested in hand painted rayon and cotton damask. Craigmore and Windsor closed in the 1950s. Bessbrook was sold to Ulster Weavers who ran it for 5 years or so before it finally closed.
- Collection:
- National Museums Northern Ireland
- Object name:
- Sound Recording : Magnetic Tape, Reel; Sound Recording
- Object number:
- HOYFM.R2001.9
- Object production date:
- 14/11/2000
- Object production person:
- Black, William (Mr)
- Right holder:
- National Museums NI
- Text reason:
- Collections online record
Persistent shareable link for this record: https://museumdata.uk/objects/3a07816c-337a-3c51-844b-ef2a175c8d99
Use licence for this record: CC BY-NC
Attribution for this record: https://museumdata.uk/objects/3a07816c-337a-3c51-844b-ef2a175c8d99, National Museums Northern Ireland, CC BY-NC
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