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In
a series of radio reports, called 'The Warp and the Weft' Spencer
explained why he had taken this journey into the past, the present
and the future of the industry:
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| Manningham
Mills: Glory days are in the past |
"Fifty
years ago, 8000 people were employed in mills across Bradford -
today that figure stands at just 1500.
The
woollen industry shaped this city, and the mills that processed
the wool stand as a monument to a time when Bradford was the centre
of Britain's textile trade.
Wherever
you go in the Bradford today, there are reminders of that industry.
From the Wool Exchange in the city centre, to Saltaire in the Aire
Valley. From the dilapidated Lister's Mill, once the jewel in Manningham's
crown, to Forster Square which was named after the great mill owner
himself.
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| High
Tech businesses are now taking over the premises of the old
industries in Bradford |
With
the imminent closure of one of the city's largest mills, Whiteheads
at Laisterdyke, the future for the industry in the city can sometimes
be written-off all too easily.
But
there is still hope, the Director of one mill still running - Wyedean
Weaving at Haworth - says he is optimistic about business growth.
And
people who live in the shadow of Lister's Mill at Manningham believe
that one day the building will once again be put back into use.
There
is, in short, as much to look forward to as there is to mourn..."
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