Former Handloom Weaver's Cottages, Ardsley

Nos. 3-5 Top Row, Doncaster Road, Ardsley

Building

Roofed and walled permanent structures.

Asset type

Building

Age

Mid 18th to early 19th century farm building, converted to cottages by at least 1839.

Rarity

A rare survival of a handloom weaver's cottage in the regional vernacular.

Architectural and Artistic Interest

The building is built from coursed sandstone with dressed stone used to form lintels, sills, quoins and coping to gable ends. The east elevation is divided into two bays each with a first floor door accessed via a set of stone stairs, and small windows to the basement, first and second floor. The arrangement of access to the first floor reflect the position of the former loomshops in the basement. Unlike woollen loomshops which tended to occupy the attic, linen (and cotton) weaving mostly took place in cellars or basements where the damper air made the yard less likely to snap. Structural evidence is visible across the exterior of the building illustrating the likely creation of the cottages within an earlier building. These include part of a wide cart passage entrance with dressed stone arch, blocked windows and doors, and inserted openings. These enrich the character of the building and add an increased sense of its history.

Historic Interest

Barnsley developed as the centre of a linen weaving industry in the 1740s through the enterprise of William and John Wilson who established a warehouse and system of outworking to serve their own bleachworks. Other businesses followed, and a large number of weavers' cottages were built or converted from farm buildings in Barnsley and the surrounding villages of Ardsley and Dodworth. Handloom weaving continued to be important into the mid-19th century, after which it began to decline as a result of competition from Scotland and labour disputes. The buildings at Top Row, Ardsley, were potentially present by the time of Thomas Jeffrey's map of Yorkshire in 1767-1770, when he depicted a row of buildings in proximity to the site. By the tithe survey of 1839 the property as owned by William Poppleton, gentleman, and consisted of six cottages. By the middle of the 19th century these had potentially been extended to nine cottages. On the basis of structural evidence it is likely that the first buildings were converted to weavers' cottages, possibly from earlier farm buildings, possibly c.1800. Whist the buildings were truncated by road widening, three of the original six cottage survive.

Archaeological Interest

The buildings preserve evidence within their fabric for not only the form and function of the original farm buildings, but also that of their conversion to weaver's cottages. Further study of the structures is likely to greatly benefit our understanding of the development and use of these buildings, and contribute towards the study of the history of the linen weaving industry in the wider region.

Landmark Status

The building lies against the side of Doncaster Road and forms a prominent historic structure within the village.

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14 Jun 2023