The Tale of a Weaver’s Daughter

My father was Managing Director of Grecian Mill in Walkden from the 1950s to the 1980s weaving rayon and furnishing fabrics on jacquard and dobby looms. As a child I loved to visit the mill with all its noise and colour and learn of the different weaving and dyeing methods.

From an early age I was taught to appreciate the quality and design of my father’s Smedley polos which to my friends looked like any other Dad’s sweater. As teenagers my sister and I would squabble over which of Dad’s polos to wear - a beautiful moss green or mottled brown being our favourites - they were indestructible and what tales they could tell! My greatest regret is that I do not have a single polo as a memory - only some evocative photographs which I shall hunt out and post when I have a moment ….