Quarry Bank Mill †questions and answers Essay

1) why did Samuel Greg establish a like fiber mill in Styal in 1784?Greg launch a cotton drudgery rather than a silk poor boy or early(a) type of factory because cotton was the material that e rattlingone wanted. Greg was a cotton merchant so he knew of altogether the advances in technology that were grass it easier for cotton to be spun and woven. He knew that the machines making mickles jobs easier were as well big to conniption in their houses as they had done in the past, so he resolute that if he built a mill to house them whence he could make a lot of notes seeing as cotton was in demand.Greg was a cotton merchant, so he knew the area. In the pass pile would be farming, and in the winter they would be spinning cotton. Greg knew that these people would want a regular job to do all division so cotton was a skilful industry as they were already experienced at it, and wasnt as laborious as farming. Also, collectible to the invention of John Kays flying shuttl e in 1733, the spinners were assay to commemorate up, as they could non spin enough thread for the weavers. Greg knew this so he decided that is he had a lot of spinners then he would be paid lots because thread for weaving was in mellowed demand.Greg established his mill in 1784 because this was when the patents for cotton manufacture machines ran out. In 1771 Arkwright invented the waterframe which was a spinning machine powered by water. More cotton could be made, so the price would drop which meant more than people would buy cotton. However, Arkwright had a patent on this machine so it was very expensive. Greg had in all likelihood been time lag until the patent on it ran out before he built his mill.The Arkwright waterframe call for a water impart, and Styal was the perfect place for Greg to build his mill. The d cause on which he built his mill was hilly, so very cheap because it was too steep for farming. It cost Greg closely 2 per year to rent this land off the E arl of Stamford. The land that he bought had steep sides because it was part of a valley with a stream at the bottom. There were no factories upstream so at that place was nothing disturbing the waterpower, so Greg had a fast, regular tag on of energy.Greg had the money to rent this land and afford to build a mill and employ landers because when he was 9 he moved to Manchester to live with his uncles who were in the cotton trade. He inherited 10,000 from one uncle when he died, and when the other uncle retired he left Greg 25,000 worth of trading to Greg when he was 24.Styal was overly a broad(a) place to build a mill because it was adept to Manchester so there was a close comport system. Cotton was transported from Egypt and India to Liverpool, and from Liverpool it was taken along the Bridgewater provide to Broadheath. It would then be taken from Broadheath by horse and cart to Styal. This transport system was good fro Greg because it made the raw cotton accessible, an d it was reliable so he could always cod a steady incoming supply of cotton, and he could transport his own spun cotton to cotton merchants so had a steady income.Course engagement Quarry Bank Mill2) To what extent do the Gregs deserve their reputation as good employers?Samuel Greg seems like a good employer, just there are cases against him, and cases which enhance his reputation as a good mill owner.The operative conditions in the mill were quite loud. denotations from the mill show us that there was fine cotton in the air, which got into peoples lungs and caused lung problems for piddleers. Also, the cotton was highly flammable, so a tiny spark from one of the machines could locomote a fire. The floors and ceiling support beams were made out of wood, which was also a fire hazard. However, Greg covered the ceilings with metal panels, and had stone staircases for a fire unhorse where people would be safe. In the mill it was very hot and wet because cotton was stronger when it was damp. Employees couldnt open windows because they had to grip conditions like this, so they were constrained to work in a hot and damp factory.The machines were all jam-packed tightly into the factory and there were no safety guards so it was very easy to get caught up in the machines. However, sources from the mill show that there were very rarely any deaths from people getting caught in machines, although not all cases may confine been recorded for the mill to avoid a bad, dangerous reputation. In the factory it would possess been loud because of all the machines, so the workers put cotton in their ears to reduce the impose on _or_ oppress, as earmuffs provided became integrity in 1986. Despite the fact these working conditions werent the best to be working in, all other mills were the aforesaid(prenominal) and possibly worse.The hours people worked were fairly similar to the hours worked by people at other mills. However, all ages worked the same. germs at the mill , and source A reads us that all employees worked 68 hours a week. However, Source A was written in 1834, and the factory act was passed the year before in 1833. The factory act stated that 9-13 year olds only worked a 48 hour week, but Greg was making them work the same hours as all other employees over 13. However, there was no depict of births until 1837, which meant that you didnt know how old children were, so magistrates couldnt prove that Greg was gaolbreak the law. Also, other factory owners were doing just the same, and breaking other laws such as the night working of children, and making them work under the age of 9, whereas Greg was obeying these rules. Also, Greg occupied families, so they could all work together, and employed trains.In Source A, Greg states that no children under 12 were made to work, however Greg wrote this himself so he could good crap lied as no inspector came to make for surely he was telling the truth. Also, there were no birth certificate s so it was infeasible to prove how old the children actually were so Greg could make under 12s work and get away with it.Greg did not believe in punishing his workers, collectable to his religion, so there was no corporal penalty inflicted on his employees. Source A proves that Greg did not enforce corporal punishments, however, Source A is a questionnaire sent to Greg to answer about his own mill. The factory commissioners did not run into the mill they just relied on the answers to the questionnaire given to them by the factory owners. Greg could have been biased in his answers because it was his own mill so he would belike have lied to make his mill seem go against. Also, question 64 asks if any complaints have been taken against him or any overseers on the punishment of employees. No answer is given to this question, which makes it seem dubious. Either Greg was guilty and did not want to lie so he gave no answer, or he was being truthful and no complaint had been alleged so he did not answer because there had been no cases.Despite these details making Greg seem a good employer, there is also the case of Esther Price. Source C says that she was put in solitary confinement in a dungeon with windows darkened by boards being nailed up against them on the wrong. Price was supposed to have been in this way for 5 eld without vindicated, fire or a bed. However it is said that she escaped by and by finding out a dead body was in the manner next to her and she was so terrified she managed to escape. This story seems a bit extreme, and is believably biased because it was written by John Doherty, who was campaigning for less working hours for mill employees, so he would be extremely critical and would probably exaggerate the details. We do not know how old Esther Price was, or whether she was a typical worker, or an exception.Also, if she had skipped work, why didnt they just snitch her head like they did to punish other girls, or just make her work thr ough her break times to make up for the work lost. She was supposed to have been kept in a dungeon but we do not know how big this room was, or whether it genuinely was a dungeon. If Greg was not big on punishments, then why have a dungeon specifically for solitary confinement, and if the boards keeping out the light were nailed on the inside, then why couldnt the prisoner just blow them off? Greg was well known for being a good employer and run a good mill, so Doherty probably chose him to pick on to damage his reputation. Also, Esther stayed on at the mill after she was 21 and was allowed to leave the assimilator house, so her experience couldnt have been that bad otherwise she would have left and got another job somewhere else.Sources at the mill tell us that the wages Gregs workers happend were less than in other mills, but the conditions were better, and better housing was provided. Greg built a settlement near to the mill for his workers to live in. The rent for these ho uses was less than in other places, and the houses themselves were better than in other places. Greg built two-up-two-down houses, which had more room and were better than the consecutive houses built in other cities because instead of having a family or more in each room, you had a family in each half of the room so it was more hygienic. There were outside toilets for each of these houses in the lessened yard at the back, and there were allotments so workers could grow their own regimen and spend their money on other things. In this village, there was also a bakers, a few shops and a church for workers.In the learner house, apprentices were given a healthy diet, and were fed twice any day, which was extremely good as in other workplaces they would sometimes not receive any food in one day. Workers in the mill had a breakfast time before they started work they stopped for lunch and then could have their own evening meal when they got home. Source B states that apprentices had e very day, which would have been quite expensive. On the other hand, this source was written by Andrew Ure who was convinced that factories were a good way to keep children happy and employed. He was writing to argue that factories were good so would probably be biased. Sources at the mill show there was a doctor that regularly visited the apprentice house. Healthcare was not a necessity, so Greg was ahead of the future laws be making sure his apprentices were in good health and were cared for when sick.Greg made sure that the apprentices attended school regularly and they were taught how to read, write and some maths. This was probably for his own benefit because if his employees could read then they could read signs put up about hour or wage changes, or could go on to work sorting out the mills finances or something that required more than just a person with thin nimble fingers. In the workers village there was a church, and workers and apprentices attended the church regularly.Des pite the cases against him, Greg appears to be a good employer. He was keeping almost all his working conditions at bottom the law, and the factory conditions were no worse than other factories. He was educating his apprentices which was giving them a chance of a good future, and was sending them to church which wasnt necessary but he wanted them to go anyway. He employed a doctor which wasnt a requirement, so he wanted to keep his apprentices in good health. He also did not enforce forcible punishments, and there were hardly any deaths.He provided them with cheap rent for good houses. I think that Greg was a good employer, but he did have an ulterior motive, which was money. By educating his apprentices they could do other jobs for him, which brought in more money than working machines. He may have built a mill purely because he was concerned about the families going out of business because of the new machines, or he would rather they worked in a factory with better conditions l ike his, or he built the mill because he wanted to make money, and he could make enough to afford to keep his workers happy.