Manufacturing Cheshire: Industrial Archaeology from the Romans to the 20th Century

Middlewich, canals and saltworks

Mike Nevell

This introductory course will look at the some of the new material that has been uncovered by archaeologists during the last 30 years relating to manufacturing and industry in the Cheshire region, from excavated 18th-century cotton mills to Roman copper mining. The earliest large-scale manufacturing in Cheshire was undertaken by the Romans (salt, mining and pottery making). Salt and pottery making recur in the medieval period but it was during the 18th century that the region came to national prominence through silk manufacture. This course will cover the early manufacturing and the classic industries of the Industrial Revolution – corn mills, textiles, iron and engineering, canals and railways, as well as looking at the new industrial settlements of the 18th and 19th centuries.

The course programme is:

  1. Introduction – Roman manufacturing in Cheshire
  2. Medieval manufacturing in Cheshire
  3. Salt Production
  4. Silk Making
  5. Cotton Industry
  6. Iron and Quarrying
  7. Turnpikes and Canals
  8. Railways & Chester
  9. Agricultural Revolution & Corn Mills
  10. Living in the Industrial TownDay:  Wednesdays         Time: 19.00-21.0010 week course from Wednesday 26th September to 5th December, 2018 (including halfterm)

     Venue:
    South Trafford Archaeology Group Headquarters
    (http://www.stag-archaeology.uk)
    behind the old Hall
    Altrincham Golf course
    Stockport Road
    Timperley
    Altrincham
    WA15 7LP

    Price Concessions Minimum No. Maximum No.
    £65 n/a 8 30

    To book, complete the MANCENT booking form and send it with payment to

    To book contact Mike Nevell, University of Salford, Centre for Applied Archaeology, Peel Building, Crescent, Salford, M5 4NW email: m.d.nevell@salford.ac.uk phone:  0161 295 3825