It was the canal, coal and cotton industries which changed Clayton-le-Moors from a sleepy old hamlet to a bustling industrial village. From 1801 to 1810, Enfield was the terminus of the canal from Leeds until the finance was raised to complete the canal. First to Blackburn then on to Wigan and eventually to Liverpool. The Leeds and Liverpool canal at Enfield has a number of substantial warehouses and buildings and this stretch of the canal has several old swing bridges.
The site was originally developed as a steam powered corn mill constructed in 1827-8 by Joseph Appleby - a highly regarded Industrialist and Philanthropist of the time. The Mill was serviced by both road and canal although the Appleby Family made good use of the canal by having their own fleet of barges to transport their products.
In 1875 – The Mill House was built in the yard of the Corn Mill for Arthur Appleby (Joseph Appleby's second Son), and his family. Arthur Appleby was born on 22 July 1843 at Henfield House on Blackburn Road, Henfield (later known as Enfield), Clayton-le-Moors. Arthur became a first class cricketer beginning his playing days at Enfield Cricket Club, Clayton-le-Moors in 1861. He played in 58 matches for Lancashire between 1866 and 1887 and in 81 first-class matches in total and continued playing until about 1901.
He was about 20 years of age when he started to show interest in his father’s business at The Corn Mill in Enfield, Clayton-le-Moors and a few years later he became a partner in the firm. He and his elder brother Edgar assumed control of the family firm after their father’s death in 1878. Amongst other directorships, he sat on the board of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, he was an Alderman of the Lancashire County Council and Chairman of the County Bench, sitting at Church.
Arthur died aged 59 at The Mill House in Clayton-le-Moors on 24 October 1902. When he died, all work ceased and schools were closed for the day in respect for a great Lancastrian. Nearly 700 people walked behind his coffin on its journey from The Mill House to All Saints Church. Thirty-two private carriages followed in the procession, eight of them containing his corn merchants colleagues from Liverpool and Bootle. The Mill ceased production in 1920 and in 1922 the East Lancashire Soap Company, owned by the Hacking family, occupied the mill. Among other lines produced there was the famous Dr Lovelace’s floating soap - it was very popular at the time as it didn’t get lost in the bath! The Dr Lovelace’s plaque is still situated on the right hand gateway pillar at the entrance to The Mill House.
The factory has now long gone – demolished in 1962 (now the car park) but the house and what we assume were the mill offices still stand. The original photographs of the Corn Mill still remain on record. The Mill House was saved from demolition by the members of the Freemasons’ Albert Edward Lodge No.1519, (founded 1874), who remodelled it and turned it in to a Masonic Hall. They were holding regular meetings at the Conservative Club just across the main road. They recognised the potential so reclaimed the land and purchased the building in 1967, converting the old property into a Masonic Hall. After the conversion, the first Masonic meeting was held on Thursday 25 November 1971 by Albert Edward Lodge.
The Hall was extended and extensively refurbished during the summer recess (2011) with new Ladies, Gents and Disabled toilet facilities plus improved access for its less able visitors. The new extension, built with donations from the Haslingden Masonic Hall Company gave a new entrance, lodge room, anteroom, store room and toilets. During 2013 a new kitchen extension was added to The Mill House; roof repairs carried out in 2017 and more recently, refurbishments have taken place to replace the ceiling in the main function room and reinstate the windows to give a much needed facelift to this historic building.
Whatever your celebration - allow our events team to take care of everything for you. Contact us to discuss your celebration and make an appointment to visit us so we can show you our newly refurbished venue and all that it has to offer. Whether you are celebrating a birthday, organising a wedding, or enquiring about conference facilities - we'd love to help.
As a privately owned venue, we place great importance on each individual celebration and we take every effort to consider all aspects of your special day. Our events team are available to assist you with every detail from initial enquiry through to planning the finer details and the running of your event on the day itself.
Get in touch today.
Check out our latest parties and most recent celebrations. Read about how we operate and a little bit about what our staff get up to outside of The Mill House.
