It's a dyeing trade!

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Silent Hill

Veteran Member
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Location
The Pennine Chain. Land of Clogs, Flat Caps and Dr
"Brook Dyeing Company, Huddersfield"

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They were commision dyers for a host of textile companies. Textile Mills closed, cheap imports ensued, trade dwindled and here we are today. I do have a slight connection with the company as I used to work for a Textile Mill that supplied them with yarn to dye. It's not my first visit here either. There's a lot of activity within the complex as it seems certain parts are being rented out by small companies. As to what will happen to the derelict plant itself is anyone's guess!

The image link that accompanied my previous report has broken.... That be down to me then :embarrassed: So for those that missed it 1st time around......... I give you.........

BDCS01.jpg


Here's some shots that I took outside.

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This is a rather large pipe, and a high non smoking stack.

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The pipe started It's journey from the boiler house.

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This is the boiler (there were two of them)

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The boilers were responsible for generating heat to here.

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And here. (It kept the workers nice and warm)

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These metal ladders led to the top of this holding tank. I didn't climb them because I'm a wimp.

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I did however climb these.

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They had the sweet aroma of aged oak, and they made a lovely creaking sound.

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I then found an assortment of buckets and bins. It must have been a difficult decision choosing the one you fancied for the day. They were used to mix synthetic organic dyestuff in.

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This one was Yellow.

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I didn't open these in fear of internal pressure, and ending up looking like I had been tango'd

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This was used to control a crane. It seemed it moved in different directions. It reminded me of those at seaside resorts. The one's you had to manipulate to win a cuddly prize. This one didn't work because the electric seemed to be off.

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This window is broken. The heavy weight on the window sill may have been the culprit.

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Moving on this came into view. Somebody had built a makeshift canteen.

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The roof was constructed of draped cotton. It contained a fridge and a microwave. There was even a mirror on the wall. I wonder who was the fairest of them all.

BDCS24.jpg


I liked it in this room. The light was nice.

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This dye pan had a No15 painted on it! I once used it as one of my lottery numbers. I had no luck.

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This strange shaped room had lots of monitors. I think the department manager liked his gadgets.

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This must have been his brother.

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This machine looked mean.

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Steel pipes. One had big wing nuts. One pipe was missing a nut. I have no idea where it went.

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I took this myself. It is me in the picture.

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Order sheets. This one is for Brierley's. I used to work there.

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I think It's safe to say..... I have enjoyed my time here.

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Time to go. And thanks for looking.

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:wink:
 
Last edited:
I guess I should know this but so many things to remember, so I have to ask. What are those effects in the pictures that make the colours stand out so well. Is it done via the camera when the pictures are taken or is it edited later with software ? If software, which software and is there an equivalent that can be used on video as well as stills ?
 
I guess I should know this but so many things to remember, so I have to ask. What are those effects in the pictures that make the colours stand out so well. Is it done via the camera when the pictures are taken or is it edited later with software ? If software, which software and is there an equivalent that can be used on video as well as stills ?

I use photoscape software for editing. It suits my style, and best of all, It's free :) As for video! It depends on your budget and your needs. This contains the top ten free downloads..... http://www.akascope.com/2011/07/15/free-video-editing-software/ Hope this helps ;)
 
Great report, the write up had me laughing too, you have a similar sense of humour to me....

''One pipe was missing a nut. I have no idea where it went'' :lol: :lol:
 
Nice one sir! Thanks for sharing!
I'm guessing the next person to report on here will call it "dye another day" and so on....
 
i used to work here 20 odd years ago, did 3 years on the nightshift when things were a little better for the dyeing trade! some excellent pictures there brought back some memories , mainly of the smell which i wont ever forget.
needless to say 20years ago the nightshift got booted due to lack of work so im suprised they lasted this long. back then the whole of the complex was brooks and it was a fair few years after i finished they started renting bits out as units.
many a night i wondered around this mill, i was a packer, which basically meant i packed fibre into huge stainless steel cages and then craned them up to one of the dyehouses for my mate to pop into a high pressure machine to dye the contents, it was a bit of an exact science, the fibre had to be packed just right, not too loose or not too tight for the dye to work its way round the fibre in the cages evenly, an uneven dye usually had to go back in or was dumped and another done.
after dyeing the cages came out boiling hot, but that didnt stop me emptying them then jumping in to clean out all the little dye holes of fibre that always stuck in them, usually down the bottom of the cage where it would be hottest! then a sample was taken t the office with all the monitors for checking, hopefully it was the right shade!
after this the fibres were sent to the spinners then onto the dryers which show in the pictures. bailed and sent out to the customer.
this was piece work at the time and i had to do 11 dyes a night, if any came out wrong they had to be redone, but i was able to go home when all 11 dyes had been passed, many a time ive sat in holmfirth at 4 in the morning bored cos i finished work tooe arly and had to wait for a bus!
the tubs of dye etc are something you would want to steer clear of, the powder dye can give you skin cancer and dermetitus, the guy i worked with (he was the dyer) had multi coloured fingers even though he used the strongest bleach at the end of the shift to try and get clean. i believe years after the nightshift was killed he did actually get skin cancer on his hands,,, not good.
i enjoyed my time here and the pay was excellent, it was hard to see the company going slowly down the pan, at one time they were buying up all the other dye mills around yorkshire so they could be numebr one in the dye trade, maybe thats why they lasted so long.
the boss was a right cnut tho, started out as the dad then he died and the son took over, the dad was ok but the son was a mofo. id have had a job a lot longer if it wasnt for him saving pennies by laying ppl off!
just wanted to say thanks for the op for this report, i found it extremely good to see the old place again and might even take a ride over to see it now its been left to disrepair. what a shame but hey it did last a long time!

sorry ive been lurking on this forum for a long time just registered so i could share the above with you!!
 
i used to work here 20 odd years ago, did 3 years on the nightshift when things were a little better for the dyeing trade! some excellent pictures there brought back some memories , mainly of the smell which i wont ever forget.
needless to say 20years ago the nightshift got booted due to lack of work so im suprised they lasted this long. back then the whole of the complex was brooks and it was a fair few years after i finished they started renting bits out as units.
many a night i wondered around this mill, i was a packer, which basically meant i packed fibre into huge stainless steel cages and then craned them up to one of the dyehouses for my mate to pop into a high pressure machine to dye the contents, it was a bit of an exact science, the fibre had to be packed just right, not too loose or not too tight for the dye to work its way round the fibre in the cages evenly, an uneven dye usually had to go back in or was dumped and another done.
after dyeing the cages came out boiling hot, but that didnt stop me emptying them then jumping in to clean out all the little dye holes of fibre that always stuck in them, usually down the bottom of the cage where it would be hottest! then a sample was taken t the office with all the monitors for checking, hopefully it was the right shade!
after this the fibres were sent to the spinners then onto the dryers which show in the pictures. bailed and sent out to the customer.
this was piece work at the time and i had to do 11 dyes a night, if any came out wrong they had to be redone, but i was able to go home when all 11 dyes had been passed, many a time ive sat in holmfirth at 4 in the morning bored cos i finished work tooe arly and had to wait for a bus!
the tubs of dye etc are something you would want to steer clear of, the powder dye can give you skin cancer and dermetitus, the guy i worked with (he was the dyer) had multi coloured fingers even though he used the strongest bleach at the end of the shift to try and get clean. i believe years after the nightshift was killed he did actually get skin cancer on his hands,,, not good.
i enjoyed my time here and the pay was excellent, it was hard to see the company going slowly down the pan, at one time they were buying up all the other dye mills around yorkshire so they could be numebr one in the dye trade, maybe thats why they lasted so long.
the boss was a right cnut tho, started out as the dad then he died and the son took over, the dad was ok but the son was a mofo. id have had a job a lot longer if it wasnt for him saving pennies by laying ppl off!
just wanted to say thanks for the op for this report, i found it extremely good to see the old place again and might even take a ride over to see it now its been left to disrepair. what a shame but hey it did last a long time!

sorry ive been lurking on this forum for a long time just registered so i could share the above with you!!

Nice one mate. Glad it brought back some memories. Welcome to the forum :)
 

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