Mosney Mill History
During the renovations, the family uncovered Mosney’s rich history. Mosney on the banks of the River Darwen near Preston in Lancashire, was the site of a former print works, known as Mosney Print Works.
It was in operation from 1780 to 1788, and in this small space of time, Mosney Print Works made great progress in cloth printing. Thomas Bell of Mosney invented his “new and peculiar” * method of printing up to six colours at a time, with copper plates, patented in 1783.
Further improvements were made to Thomas Bell’s idea, leading John Slater, a calico printer of Mosney, to patent a press “for printing 1-2-3 or more colours on cotton etc” * just two years later in 1785.
This invention, which it has been argued by historians was as important for the finishing of fabrics as Arkwright’s Spinning Jenny was to the manufacture of the base cloth, paved the way towards modern day fabric printing. Emma believed this was a sign that she should bring print back to Mosney.
“It feels incredible to be doing what I love most at the place I love the most. I love seeing the designs come together and to be able to show them to other people. I couldn’t be happier that the Mosney creatures that I have included in my range are adored by so many people.” – Emma Sutton.
* Ref: Hunt, D. Carnegie Publishing Ltd, 1997. A History of Walton-Le-Dale and Bamber Bridge. Pg104.