Salts Mill, Saltaire, West Yorkshire
Salts Mill is a former textiles mill which has now been converted into an arts and crafts centre with various shops, galleries, a cafe and a restaurant. It is undoubtedly an impressive historic building both inside and out with a grand air about it. In 2001, Salts Mill and the village of Saltaire were recognised as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as the largest model industrial village of nineteenth century England still remaining.
Salts Mill was founded by Sir Titus Salt in 1853 and he also built the model town of Saltaire between 1851 and 1876 comprising of over 800 houses, 45 alms houses, a church, shops and a school. Following in his father’s footsteps he trained as a wool merchant and became successful owning five mills in Bradford before establishing Salts Mill. His generosity reached far into the community.
As you enter Salts Mill through the ground floor you step into the 1853 Gallery, named after the year the mill was built, a spectacular room with artwork by the local Bradford-based artist, David Hockney, China vases and other artifacts. There are various art books and postcards for sale.
The second floor of Salts Mill houses a fantastic bookshop with a huge range of children’s books, coffee table books, travel books and all kinds of books, many of which cannot be found in your average bookstore and perfect if you are looking for a gift. There is also a large, light and colourful cafe at the far end.
Gallery 2 exhibits paintings by Henry Marvell Carr commissioned by Salts Mill in 1958 and artwork by Simon Palmer depicting Saltaire. There is also an exhibition telling the history and story of Salts Mill.
The third floor boasts a fish restaurant, florists and works by David Hockney including designs for theatre sets. Also to be found in the building are jewellery, homeware, clothes, antiques and rug shops.
Salts Mill is open all year round 7 days a week (except Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year). There is a train service to the mill as well as car parking.
Salts Mill makes for an interesting day out whatever the weather (as it is all under cover) and could be combined with a trip to nearby Haworth and the Bronte Parsonage Museum, or there are suggested walks around Saltaire and the River Aire described in the leaflet, ‘Self-guided walks in and around Saltaire’, which can be picked up locally.
For further information see www.saltsmill.org.uk
This entry was posted on Monday August 11th, 2008 at 10:27 PM and is filed under Places to Visit. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response.
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