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C H A P T E R 4
Inevitably an industrial village is the direct result of industry and also industrialists. It is the industrialist who injects capital and more importantly ideas into the making of a successful industry and consequently a village, for his workers - as this usually coincides with the birth of the industry. In his entrepreneural skills and sometimes philanthropic interests, which sets the wheels in motion. Just as the name Owen is synonymous with New Lanark, so is Lever with Port Sunlight, Salt with Saltaire, Cadbury with Bournville, Richardsons with Bessbrook and Malcolmsons with Portlaw. Portlaw came in to being with the advent of the Malcolmsons to the small village in 1825. Portlaw in effect, was non existant prior to their arrival. It was they who built Portlaw and placed it on the map of planned industrial villages of the nineteenth century. In light of the importance of the Malcolmson family to the village of Portlaw, it is inevitable I feel that consideration should be given over to their economic and social background, prior to their arrival in Portlaw at the start of the nineteenth century. The first Malcolmson traced in Ireland dates back to the seventeenth century, and the arrival of Andrew, a skilled craftsman - a linen weaver - from Scotland.' He was a Presbyterian, and it seems he had two sons Joseph and David, who were also.engaged in the linen trade. In 1748 Joseph married Rachel Greer, a Quaker, whose family was involved in the linen business. It is important to note here that Rachel was a Quaker because as a result one branch of the Malcolmson family can now be traced as Quakers. This in itself is quite important, as the Malcolmsons whilst building the model village in Portlaw, were inspired in their design by many Quaker Motives, and other Quaker magnates. Also Richard Cropper, a Quaker from England was to be a major influence on the Malcolmsons - as shall be seen later. Returning to the family history Joseph and Rachel had eleven children, all of whom were reared as Quakers. In 1774 Joseph died, and two of the children, John aged thirteen and David aged nine were sent to some Quakers in Clonmel. It was here in Clonmel around twenty miles from Portlaw that David, the founder of the family fortune and practically of Portlaw, set out on his industrial career. David's first job was as a clerk f or his cousin Sarah Grubb who was owner of Anner Mills near Clonmel. Soon after leaving her employment, he became Agent to John Bagwell, a property owner in Clonmel at the time. He also spent some Lime as a distiller in partnership with a man named Simon Sparrow, presumably the Simon Sparrow who owned Suir Islands Mill. A few years later it seems that John - David's brother - who was quite wealthy at the time, bought on behalf of David, Corporation Mills on Suir Island. His experience in the corn trade was gained from various jobs he had held during his youth, especially from his work at Anner Mills and also from John Bagwell. At this stage, it is necessary to take into consideration the economic climate in Ireland at the time, as this was an important factor as to why David Malcolmson bought these mills in the early nineteenth century. Around the beginning of the eighteenth century Ireland was essentially a country dependent upon pastoral farming, beef, butter, pork ' all were being exported from the major parts of Ireland at that time Waterford, Cork, Limerick and Dublin. However, Ireland was still dependent on imports of corn, to overcome this situation and to encourage tillage farming, the Irish Parliament around 1757 had Bounty Acts passed, which subsidised the carriage.of wheat from distant counties to Dublin. Clonmel by virtue of its position on the River Suir, was to be able to take advantage of this new opportunity and hence the year 1757, is significant to the foundation of the milling industry and the evolution of tillage farming in the area. Flour became Clonmel's chief commodity and being a bulky commodity, the river Suir was the means by which it was transported to Dublin. An added stimulus was to come in 1815 with the napoleonic collapse. The landed interest, which at this time controlled Parliament, passed the Corn Laws, which prohibited the importation of foreign grain. "This coupled with the development of manufacture and growth of population in England gave Irish agriculture an artificial stimulus". -(Burke 1907; History of Clonmel pg 181). Ireland became England's supplementary granary. Clonmel, and in particular David Malcolmson took advantage of the situation. It was in this the corn trade that David first embarked he manipulated the situation of the time and in doing so became a major supplier of corn in nineteenth century Ireland. "Clonmel now became one of the greatest grain markets of the kingdom" (Burke 1907: pg 182). Sheil in 1828 whilst visiting Clonmel saw parallels between it's groceries and the cotton factories of Lancashire, "Malcolmson's Mill is I believe the finest in Ireland. Here half the harvest of the adjoining counties as well as Tipperary is powdered" (Shiel 1855: pg 358).Clonmel is I feel, important to the development of the cotton industry in Portlaw. Many factors about David Malcolmson in Clonmel can be likened to his activities in Portlaw. Here only a few miles from the village, he proved him self a shrewd and wise opportunist, an entrepreneur in all respects. He saw the opening for corn and trusted his luck, which was not to fail him. He used waterpower to it's best potential in his manipulation of the River Suir. He treated his workers with respect and proved himself a worthy employer, even his own son was put to work in the mills, as he said himself "he will teach others by first practising his business himself " By 1822, he with his three sons Joseph, Joshua and John had built little Island Mill and had four corn stores. This was not enough however for the enterprising Quaker. In order to accommodate his increasing business he began to expand out from Clonmel, which in turn was to bring him nearer to Portlaw. He leased corn stores in Carrick-on-Suir, and became tenant '-0 Pouldrew Mills in 1824. Here at Pouldrew, just a few miles away from Portlaw, he constructed a canal in order that large boats could load at the mill, something which a few years later he was to do in Portlaw, making her share of the river navigable also. Thus we see David Malcolmson monopolising the corn trade. At the height of its prosperity he was not, however, to stop at the corn trade. Even in 1824 whilst being tenant to the Pouldrew Mills his thoughts were elsewhere. In the early months of 1825 he writes to his friend Richard Usher "We fear we are on the eve of such a change in the corn laws as will be very injurious to this country" (David Malcolmson 18.4.1825). It was more than sheer ambition that turned David's thoughts to cotton. The repeal, although it did come, was not heralded until 1846. Evidently David had seen the increase in population in England after the wars, her population was growing quickly and requiring food. Ireland could no longer compete with the other countries, who were opening their corn market to Britain at very cheap rates. "It is clear that for every barrel of foreign corn imported from foreign countries into England, she wants so much less from Ireland" (David Malcolmson 18.4.1825) Foresight, apprehension and shrewdness in business matters caused David Malcolmson and Sons to move to new fields of endeavour. They were, however, not to abandon their business enterprises in Clonmel and elsewhere. Why cotton? one may ask. The cotton industry at this point in time was far from flourishing, it had proved fruitful in the south of Ireland to a degree in the 1790's, but in 1824/5 it barely had a foothold in the country. It was though, an expanding business in England, the Continent and the North of Ireland. Many aids had been given to the extension of cotton in Ireland during the seventeen eighties/nineties. Parliament bounties were granted on sales at home in 1783, and a year later on exports. In 1794 a protective tariff was established, all this coupled with the fact that direct trade with the raw material suppliers was opened, gave an added impetuous to the initiation of cotton factories in the South. All these stimuli aided cotton manufacturers in these years. However, by the time the Malcolmson family had decided to embark upon the cotton trade, some of the protective tariffs were gone, and linen was replacing cotton manufacturers in the North. It was not though these tariffs that attracted Malcolmson to Portlaw. The key attraction to setting up their factory at Portlaw was cheap waterpower and cheap labour as well as an overabundance of both. An additional bonus to these being the fact that Portlaw was and is only a few miles from the strategic port of Waterford - as it was in those days. In his letter mentioned previously David Malcolmson speaks of having acquired lithe most eligible situation" - "with a full command of the river Clodagh" - a tributary of the Suir. David did not forget his Northern origins, as he laid great emphasis on procuring "assistance from Belfast or the other side of the water " (D. Malcolmson 18.4.1825). The main source of inspiration to this line of business came it seems from James Cropper. Malcolmson spoke of him as flour mutual friend". Cropper was a Quaker who in 1825 published a pamphlet of fifty-nine papers entitled "The Present State of Ireland with a Plan for improving the position of the People". He came to Ireland In November and December of 1824 - note that David Malcolmson wrote the letter concerning his initiation of business at Portlaw in 1825 - Cropper came with the hope of increasing Irelands prosperity which, according to him "Irish agricultural products alone could not effect" (K. Charlton 1971 pg 321) He, like Malcolmson after him, was to see Ireland's population as her best resource in economic terms. "With regard to the population of Ireland there is not one man too many for the great work they have to perform" (K. Charlton 1971:Pg 321) The manufacture of cotton goods was the kernel of Cropper's proposals. He perceived countries such as India and China as the consumers of the product as well as possible suppliers of the raw material. Furthermore, he pointed out that the factories and required housing for the workforce could be cheaper to construct than in England. Waterpower potential was another factor he made note of, especially Ireland's untapped abundance. Although enterprise played a large part in the setting up of David Malcolmson's wealth in Clonmel and subsequently in Portlaw, the role of the Irish and Ireland itself must not be overlooked. Ireland supplied for the capitalist an overabundance of cheap labour, also land was inexpensive. Added to this, Ireland also had many canals and waterways, important ingredients for the success of industry in those days. Capital and a shrewd entrepreneur were needed for a successful industry, however, so also was a cheap workforce, and relatively free infrastructure. All these essentials combined together brought about a profitable industry, for without the workers there is no industry. Parallels are self evident between what cropper advocated and what David Malcolmson proposed. David Malcolmson and Sons came to Portlaw with a wealth of knowledge in the corn trade. They had gained invaluable experience in the entrapments of businessmanship in Clonmel. In 1825 they were to bring all this experience and much more to County Waterford. Their past life, previous to their arrival in Portlaw is important, their future in Portlaw was shaped by many forces from the past, only in Portlaw they were to do much more. David Malcolmson was to set up more than a cotton industry; he was to build a model village, which today still holds remnants of what transpired over a hundred and fifty years ago.
-"Few who now see this immense establishment in full work can imagine the amount of care, forethought and energy required and exercised to bring it to it's present state" (Maguire1852: pg 164) The above was written by John Francis Maguire in 1853 whilst praising the merits and splendour of the Portlaw Cotton Factory, nearly thirty years after it's inauguration. He was not the only person to Draise the Malcolmson empire. Many travellers such as Inglis, Hall and Lewis, wrote of the imposing edifice and it's flourishing existence, and in turn.the benefits derived by the local population as a consequence of it's establishment. In light of this I feel the factory itself warrants some mention, as it alone without even reference to the village of Portlaw, manifested the initiative and imaginative scope of the Malcolmsons. It was in 1825 then, that David Malcolmson and Sons leased from John Medlycott a local landholder - Mayfield House Portlaw with around sixteen acres of land. There was a small mill on the land, and it was here that the Malcolmsons were to construct their cotton factory. This construction was the first task which befell the family. The mill on the site was an old corn mill, which had previously burnt down. T.W. Freeman speaks of canals as being the "acme of modernity in the late eighteenth century" (Freeman 1969: pg 106). The canal was for the Malcolmsons their acme of modernity and perfection. The river Clodagh on which the mill was situated joined the river Suir a mile downstream from the factory. However, this river at various times was quite shallow, therefore the Malcolmsons excavated a canal, which enabled the raw materials from America and elsewhere to be brought up the Suir to the canal, and then carried up the canal by lighters to the factory. It was not raw materials, alone which were, transported this way but coal and machinery also. The most interesting point about the canal was the fact that instead of it stopping at the factory it went inside, as it ran right in underneath the receiving house. The finished product was taken by the same means to Waterford harbour and exported - all over the world. The Clodagh was put to further use in providing efficient steam power for the running of the factory. - Three large water wheels were placed near the factory and waterpower was utilised also. The inside of the factory was unique, it was said that at that time the factory contained - the largest single space building in the world - 260 x 40 feet. The raw cotton did not come directly from America but through Liverpool. The factory required about 150 bales per week and the weekly output of the manufactured product was about forty tons. The Portlaw factory was not a small insignificant factory operating in Ireland. It could be said that the Malcolmsons and their factory at Portlaw served as ambassadors of Ireland. The factory proved that "there is no doubt that energy and industry applied to the natural resources of Ireland, may enable the Irish manufacturer to enter the market and compete with the manufacturers of England" (Hall 1841: pg 309). At the height of their prosperity the Malcomscns were exporting world wide, they were known and beared a high repute according to Maguire in 1853 in "the markets of the eastern archipelago, on the main lands of Hindostan and China, in the torrid regions of Mexico, the West Indies and Brazil, and on the west coast from Cape Horn to Oregon" (pg 164). These were the manufacturers who wrote in -1825 "we consider the attempt a very serious matter and all about us being strangers to the business" (D. Malcolmson 18.4.1825). Strangers they may have been but in the space of a few years they had proved themselves experts in their field of endeavour. The industrial revolution conjures up for many, the idea of inhumane working conditions, long working hours, poor pay, bad housing, health problems and poor sanitation. Henry Allsopp in his book An Introduction to English Industrial history vividly describes some of the conditions experienced by the workers. He tells how "many of the buildings were unsuitable, unhealthy and dangerous, the hours of labour were often as long as sixteen per day and the wages were far too low" (pg 121). The conditions of the workers portrayed here and in further passages contrasts quite markedly with the conditions experienced in Portlaw. The Portlaw workers probably worked the same hours as their Clonmel counterparts. In winter the hours of work were 7.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m. and summer 6.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m., with forty five minutes free for breakfast at 9.00 a.m. and one hour for dinner at 2.00 p.m. Wages in Portlaw at that time were 2/6 to 7/ - for boys and girls and a pound a week for adults. To many today these conditions may seem severe enough. However, in light of the context of nineteenth century Ireland and the approaching cataclysm - the famine - Portlaw was a paradise. As Maguire says "one glance at the exterior of the village and the great establishment would have been enough to put to flight the miserable nonsense that some people nurse in their brain, as to the unhappy condition of those who are employed in mills and factories" (pg 162). Apart from pay and wages the welfare of the workers was always seen to. The cotton factory had 365 windows, thus ensuring ample light for the workers. Special arrangements were made for the ventilation of rooms, all impurities were removed by large revolving fans, and the temperature of the rooms was always carefully regulated. In case of fire, a large reservoir of water was maintained on the roof of the factory, as well as there being fire escapes outside the factory. A provident society was established to care for workers when they were ill. Each week the workers contributed a certain amount of their wages to the society, and then if they became ill, it was seen to that his family was properly cared for, during the duration of his illness. The Malcolmsons were shrewd and wise men, and believed in proper administration of their workers. So much so that one of the rules of the provident society stipulated that if a member had "brought illness or accident on himself by drunkenness, debauchery, rioting, quarrelling or playing at unlawful games on the Sabbath, they shall direct his allowance money to be suspended": It appears as if the Malcolmsons were trying to establish an ideal society, this shall be further exemplified in Chapter 8, where they seemingly tried to impose Victorian attitudes of behaviour upon an Irish peasant society. In effect they were creating virtues and perhaps dismantling and transforming this peasant society. As is quite obvious the factory was not built overnight, neither was Portlaw transformed from a sleeping village to a vibrant one in the same time period. On the Malcolmsons arrival in Portlaw the population totalled 395, there were only 80 families and 72 houses. Out of the 395 persons only 94 were occupied, the main categories of occupation being- 29 employed in agriculture and 43 in trades, manufacturing and handicrafts. How then it may be asked did David Malcolmson and Sons get people to come and work in Portlaw? It must be admitted that the conditions alone in the factory may evince why people would come to work in Portlaw. Also as shall be seen in Chapter 7, the housing and living conditions of the workers were quite excellent. Due to lack of evidence it is difficult to pinpoint the origins of the first generation of workers recruited. Some written material makes reference to English artisans coming to Portlaw to initiate work in the factory. These primary workers were mainly brought over to train the indigenous population in the many trades practised within the walls of the factory. These qualified persons were certainly needed at the start, as the table (see over) shows the many various trades practised in 1852. Evidently there was no shortage of Irish workers themselves. Ireland at this point in time had an abundance of Population, also she had possessed in the late eighteenth century, a flourishing cotton trade. This, however, was not very strong in the. middle of the nineteenth century. Therefore, it could be presumed that Ireland supplied many of the skilled and unskilled hands, as people may have Table 1 Trades and Numbers of Artisans employed in 1852
migrated to Portlaw for work. David Malcolmson relates to Shiel in his travels in 1855, the origins of his workers. "He originally employed Englishmen, but he found that the Irish, on being properly instructed were just as expert. The English had intermarried with the families in the vicinity and a perfectly good understanding prevailed" (Sheil 1855: pg 355). Now that the conditions of the workers and their origins have been discussed, the following tables will give an indication as to why the Portlaw factory was such a renowned one, and by virtue of comparison one is able to see how extensive and immense the works at Portlaw were.
Table 2. Cotton Factory Employment figures for 1836
Source: Parlimentary Papers No. 138 Vol. XLV Table 2.1 Cotton Factory Employment Figures for 1839
Source: Parlimentary Papers No. 41 Vol. XLII Table 2-2 Cotton Factory Employment Figures for 1850
Source: Parlimentary Papers No. 145 Vol. XLII By mere comparison between Table 2 and Table 2.1, one is given a good indication to the relative expansion of the Portlaw factory. In the space of three years it's workforce increased by 277. Also in 1839 and 1850 Portlaw is shown as employing more than all the other factories listed. In 1836, apart from one factory in Belfast Portlaw was employing the largest amount of persons in the country, more numbers than similar factories in Armagh and Down. It must also be noted that the numbers of females employed in Portlaw and in the other factories is significantly high. This is not an unusual occurrence; female employment numbers were also significantly high in England at the time. Females traditionally had always played a part in the cotton industry, and the time of the industrial revolution was no exception. They moved to the factories when it was no longer profitable to spin at home. Female labour was required for spinning, carding, and reeling etc. all these trades in a cotton factory were traditionally ones to be filled by the females. Also it must be remembered that it was cheaper to employ females versus males, and also the males were required for the heavier work in the factories. The industrial revolution was a very important factor in regarding the part women came to play in industry. During the revolution work came to be centralised on the factory versus the home. This in turn required large amounts of capital expenditure on the part of the Capitalists. Competition was high between various industrialists and all tried to minimise costs, this many did by employing females. Also in places, the men were needed to work on the farms and to produce the agricultural products required by the community. Portlaw was no exception, inevitably women would be employed in the factory. The population of Portlaw, as already stated, at the time of the arrival of the Malcolmsons was 395, yet in the space of ten years the factory alone was employing approximately twice that figure. It is only with this in mind that one can fully understand why the Malcolmsons are called the builders of Portlaw. They were the force that brought literally thousands to the small village in search of work in the nineteenth century. The onus, therefore, was upon them to house and care for their workers. This, they did without any shortage of expense. They built out of nothing a model village. A model village which was to be copied in part by the Richardson family of Bessbrook, and it is said that the Cadbury's in building Bournville had the style and layout of Portlaw in mind. Francis Maguire in 1852, speaks of the village and it's environs as the "loveliest landscape that ever realised the dream of a poet" (pg. 162). He notes unhappily that what Portlaw was experiencing at the time of his visit "is not often to be witnessed in the small towns and villages of the country" (pg 162). He carries on to say ",how the rags of beggary nor the distressing whine of the craver of alms" (pg 162) are to be seen or heard in the district. To finish he asks the rhetorical question "In what pastoral village in Ireland could there be witnessed greater cleanliness, greater comfort, or greater cheerfulness?" (pg 162). One may feel that these passages are very idealistic and romantic, however, many writers were to praise Portlaw and speak of it, in the same light as Mr Maguire does in 1852. It must be remembered though that the conditions in the factory were only one element in the making of this model village. The Malcolmsons were creating a society, and transforming an old one. They did not pick Portlaw for purely aesthetic reasons, they capitalised on its advantages, they built a factory, and adapted the environment for their benefit. In doing so, however, many others were also to benefit as shall be seen in later chapters. |
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