Wiltshire and Somerset Woollen Weavers

Wiltshire and Somerset Woollen Weavers

by Bumble Dust at Trowbridge Museum

£17.95

Wiltshire and Somerset Woollen Weavers describes the history of cottage handloom weaving, and the livelihood of those engaged in it, which was centred on Trowbridge and the neighbouring towns and villages along Wiltshire’s border with Somerset. It looks in detail at their homes and workshops, and then traces the shift towards shop and factory weaving with power looms. It describes the structure of the industry, its personnel and tensions, and probes into the attitudes of weavers towards their work, their employers and their station in life.

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Description

Wiltshire and Somerset Woollen Weavers :  The history of cottage handloom weaving, and the livelihood of those engaged in it.

The Book

Wiltshire and Somerset Woollen Weavers describes the history of cottage handloom weaving, and the livelihood of those engaged in it. This industry was centred on Trowbridge and the neighbouring towns and villages along Wiltshire’s border with Somerset. It looks in detail at their homes and workshops, and then traces the shift towards shop and factory weaving with power looms. It describes the structure of the industry, its personnel and tensions. The book probes into the attitudes of weavers towards their work, their employers and their station in life.

The Author

Kenneth Rogers (1930-2025), archivist and historian, pursued a lifelong interest in the West Country textile industry, where his forebears had worked for many generations. A native of Trowbridge, he lived nearby for most of his professional life and heavily involved himself in the area’s heritage and society. Critics rapidly acknowledged his 1976 publication, Wiltshire and Somerset Woollen Mills, as the detailed, authoritative history of the subject.

He had long harboured the wish to write a companion volume, describing the lives and work of the weavers engaged in the trade, and had gathered extensive notes about them over many years. With the help of his son Edward, he realized his ambition. He completed the book shortly before his death in January 2025.

His book will be a lasting testimony to his scholarship and a valuable addition to the literature of industrial and social history. A source of abiding interest to everyone interested in the former clothmaking area of West Wiltshire and East Somerset.

 

You might also enjoy our book Trowbridge A History and Celebration found here

About Trowbridge Museum:

Trowbridge Museum tells the story of the town and its residents. As well as the impact of the woollen cloth trade and industrial revolution.

The museum has been housed in the Grade II listed Home Mills since 1990. The Mill was the town’s last working woollen cloth mill and Trowbridge’s largest, built in 1862-1863.

Fascinating objects, unique textile related machinery and wonderful images. Learn how the town developed from a Magna Carta Baron town to a prominent mill town, eventually producing West of England Cloth that people sought after across the world. Click here. Explore this history in our exclusive handmade lino print found here

 

Additional information

Dimensions 300 × 210 × 15 mm

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Bumble Dust at Trowbridge Museum

A small shop with a big heart that celebrates the heritage of Trowbridge and all things woolly!

Processing time

Ready to ship in 3-5 business days from United Kingdom (UK)

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Refund policy

Please notify us via the contact form on our shop homepage if you would like to claim a refund. If you return goods to us because you have cancelled the Contract (in accordance with clause 8), we will process the refund due to you as soon as possible and, in any case, within thirty (30) days of our receipt of the returned goods. In this case, we will refund the Price of the goods in full (excluding postage costs). We cannot offer a refund on earrings for pierced ears unless defective. If you wish to obtain a refund because the goods are defective, the goods must be returned to us in the same condition in which you received them within twenty-eight (28) days from the receipt of the goods. We will examine the returned goods and will notify you whether we agree the goods are defective via e-mail within a reasonable period of time. If we agree that the goods are defective, we will usually process the refund due to you as soon as possible and, in any case, within thirty (30) days of the day we confirmed to you via e-mail that you were entitled to a refund and we will refund the delivery charges for sending the goods to you and the cost incurred by you in returning the defective goods to us as well as the Price.

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