Description and History of Site:-
Dean Clough Mills are a 20 acre site, mostly at the bottom of the steep Hebble Valley just to the east of Halifax town centre. Formerly Crossley's Carpet Mills. Building started 1841 with "A" mill of 6 storeys, followed by "B" of 6 storeys in 1850 (demolished c1985, "C" of 8 storeys (demolished c1985), "D" of 6 storeys in 1854, "E" of 9 storeys in 1857, "F" of 6 storeys in 1858, "G" of 10 storeys in 1867 and "H" of 5 storeys (demolished c1985). Chimney (300ft high), topped by a metal crown, built 1857. Carpet manufacturing ceased and the mills closed in 1982. John Crossley & Sons was founded in 1802 by brothers John, Thomas and James Travis Crossley. Initially leased water-powered mill at Dean Clough. John Crossley died 1837 and his sons John, Joseph and Francis continued the business, building new mills from 1841 to 1867 and introducing steam power. By the beginning of C20 Crossleys employed over 5000 people and were one of the world's largest carpet manufacturers. By the mid-1970s business was seriously declining and Dean Clough closed in 1982.

Ernest Hall and Jonathan Silver bought the site in 1983 and converted it into an arts and business complex.

Further Reading and References:-
Thompson, W J (ed). A brief guide to the industrial heritage of West Yorkshire. Association for Industrial Archaeology, 1989.
English Heritage: National Heritage List for England.
Webster, E. Dean Clough and the Crossley inheritance. 2nd ed, Dean Clough Publications, 1994.
Giles, C and Goodall, I H. Yorkshire textile mills: the buildings of the Yorkshire textile industry 1770-1930. HMSO, 1992.

Help us improve this entry

The compilers welcome corrections or additional information on all sites.
Any information provided will be verified before appearing on the web site.

Email comments

Key Words :- textile carpets mills

Viewing the Site :- From the road

Address :- Dean Clough, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX3 5AJ
Grid Ref :- SE 09007 25844
Co-ordinates :- Lat 53.728917 , Long -1.864960
Local Authority :- Calderdale Council
Pre 1974 County :- Yorkshire - West Riding
Site Status :- Listed - Grade II
Historic England List No - 1243572,
Site Condition :- Site refurbished to industrial / commercial use
Site Dates :- 1841 -
Record Date :- 20 August 2014

Copyright :- cc-by-nc-sa 4.0 © Robert Vickers