4/5 Richard E. 4 years ago on Google
Huge
old
mill
complex
a
short
walk
from
the
centre
of
Armley
and
the
bus
routes
on
Stanningley
Rd
(there's
also
a
sizeable
free
car
park
to
the
front,
but
it's
perfectly
accessible
by
public
transport).
The
approach
alone
is
very
atmospheric,
with
the
canal
to
one
side
and
trees
to
the
other.
Go
on
a
gloomy
autumn
or
winter
afternoon
for
the
full
Dickensian,
slightly
eerie
experience!
This
is
a
very
different
building
to
Salts
Mill
-
less
dramatic
in
some
ways,
but
with
more
hidden
corners,
levels,
bits
that
have
been
added
on
the
years,
and
much
of
its
original
contents.
The
complex
is
huge
-
briefly
the
biggest
factory
in
Europe
-
and
clings
to
the
Armley
side
of
the
Aire
Valley
between
various
Victorian
engineering
marvels
including
the
steep
and
winding
Canal
Road
itself,
the
looming
railway
arches
and
viaducts,
the
massive
engineering
works
of
the
railway,
mill
races,
canal
and
channels.
There
are
multiple
levels
and
galleries
to
explore;
often
you'll
be
by
yourself
and
have
freedom
to
take
as
much
time
as
you
need
due
to
the
sheer
size
of
the
place.
Highlights
include
the
working
looms,
cinema,
reconstructed
Victorian
home
interiors
and
the
area
around
the
chimney
stack,
mill
race,
waterwheel
and
sluice,
where
you
get
a
real
sense
of
the
scale
of
the
place
and
the
change
in
levels.
It's
a
little
scruffy
and
down
at
heel
but
I'd
imagine
it's
much
how
it
would
have
looked
when
it
was
full
of
workers
at
the
height
of
textile
production.
If
you
want
some
context,
a
short
drive
or
bus
ride
to
nearby
Gotts
Park
contains
the
remains
of
the
mansion
which
the
eponymous
industrialist
built
so
he
could
look
over
the
mill
-
source
of
his
wealth
-
in
the
early
1800s,
lit
up
by
night
like
a
beacon
in
the
valley.
Yes,
it
could
be
better
presented
/
maintained
in
places
but
it's
council
owned
and
run
and
they
are
somewhat
short
of
resources
in
the
present
political
climate.
It's
still
an
absolute
must
for
anyone
with
an
interest
in
the
Victorian
period,
working
class
/
social
history,
industry
/
machinery
and
engineering.
The
smell
of
grease
and
oil
transports
you
back
to
a
time
before
everything
was
clean,
sterile
and
frankly
a
bit
soulless.