FROM WAGS TO RICHES
Helen Werin follows a ‘loosely-woven’ silk trail around eastern Cheshire
Holding up a silk moth cocoon – smaller than my thumb – the museum curator asked; “Now, how much thread do you think we will get from this?” I guessed; a few metres maybe? No, way off.
It’s hard to believe that this tiny white cocoon would yield one kilometre of precious thread. Even harder to believe that the silk process was accidentally discovered four thousand years ago by a Chinese princess who dropped the cocoon she was playing with into her cup of tea – and found that it unravelled.
Perhaps it’s a little easier then to imagine what noisy hives of industry the silk mills around Macclesfield must have been at their peak in the 19th century before some of them were turned into the upmarket loft apartments and fancy furniture showrooms of today.
That picture was made even clearer for us with the help of the Silk Museum and Paradise Mill and the Silk Heritage Centre. And that’s why we were here in Macclesfield; following a rather loosely-woven silk trail around these north eastern parts of Cheshire, with a few detours to landmarks, stately homes and inspirational gardens and a peek into the neighbouring Peak District along the way.
Many of the 150 mills which were once the lifeblood of Macclesfield are long gone, but the legacy of the silk industry lives on in the museums, as we discovered when we stepped through the doors of the Paradise Mill. Before us was row upon tightly packed row of Jacquard looms, with a spinning wheel in one corner and an office where intricate designs were scattered about on the desk as if its occupant had just nipped out for a cuppa. If it felt a bit like discovering the Marie Celeste then that was because this mill has been ‘set’ to illustrate life there in the 1930s. The fact that the mill was ‘abandoned’ when it went into liquidation in 1981 also helped to create the impression that we were uncovering real treasure; which, of course, we were. The tie silk made here was some of the finest ever.
Simply studying how these looms were ‘threaded’ tied my brain in knots. Not surprisingly, some of them took the poor workers days to mobilise, as our wonderfully knowledgeable guide, Olga Bileski, explained. Olga is one of a number of guides who offer tours around this, the town’s most popular attraction.
A few yards up the street the Silk Museum is housed in the former Macclesfield School of Art, built in 1877 to train designers for the silk industry. Here we also learned how silk was made and prepared. At The Silk Heritage Centre, in a magnificent former Sunday School building, our youngest daughter, Sophie (eight), was thrilled to get her own silk moth cocoon. She was less delighted to hear Olga describe the thread as “basically worm spit”, though very precious spit at that.
Whilst our ‘silk trail’ may sound a rather glamorous one, Macclesfield itself is very much a workaday, down to earth, market town. Not so long ago, you might have had to be quite discreet when talking in the streets here. In the silk industry's heyday the people of Macclesfield had to be great lip readers; a skill acquired because they could not hear each other but for the deafening noise of the machinery. So, as Olga revealed, "there were no secrets in this town."
A wander through the back streets uncovered some pretty lanes, one of which was rather reminiscent of those around Montmartre. But in all other respects Macclesfield is about as far removed in appearances from Paris as it is possible to be.
That Continental style, however, certainly abounds in nearby Knutsford and Alderley Edge. This is the ostentatious land of ‘WAGS’ – footballers’ wives and girlfriends and, believe me, it shows. Even the charity shops in Knutsford are filled with ‘designer’ gear, albeit in sizes six and eight. The beautiful window displays along the narrow main street – all very ‘individual’ businesses – included exotic fashions and fripperies so obviously frightfully expensive that they bore no price tags.
At nearby Tatton Park the 18th century mansion epitomises elegance. There’s such a delightful warm atmosphere here, both inside the house and outside in the glorious series of themed gardens. On the day of our visit, charming costumed ‘characters’ from a local historical society also brought the hall to life; not that it needed much help. For this, though grand, house has all the ambience of a proud and much-loved family home but none of the oppressive stuffiness one usually associates with these stately buildings. It comes as no surprise that it is one of Cheshire’s biggest tourist attractions.
I particularly liked the Tower Garden, with its interesting tale to tell. The tower’s original purpose was as a hide in which a servant would watch out for sheep rustlers. However, in later years, it housed a hermit who was sometimes given the rather odd role of ‘frightening’ house guests as they enjoyed the garden in the evening.
We were far more spooked down by the lake where dozens of eerie Triffid-like ferns lay on the bank. It is no exaggeration to say that they looked just like the sort of temporarily dormant creatures from a ‘70s scary movie that would suddenly spring to life after dark and embark on a gory man-eating trail of destruction.
After that, the sight of the Japanese Garden was quite a relief. This is one of the finest in Europe. Although it is only open for private tours on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons, we got a pretty good – though tantalising – view of it from behind the perimeter fence.
Tatton’s conservatory building is also very fine; not surprising, really, as it was designed in the late 1850s by Joseph Paxton, the man who built Crystal Palace. 
We wandered through the exotic fernery, to the backdrop of tinkling water, past the extensive collection brought back from New Zealand and Australia by Captain Charles Randle Egerton, a member of the family who owned the estate until 1958.
We didn’t have to travel far to enjoy the attractions of east Cheshire. We’d made our base at Jarman Farm, right on the edge of Macclesfield Forest, a lovely, peaceful spot, where we were woken up by a gaggle of Canadian geese and the sound of horses' hooves. Here we were also pretty close to the curiously-named Tegg's Nose, the former quarry which nature has now reclaimed and is a much-visited beauty spot.
It was hard to equate the peace and stunning views right across the rest of Cheshire to Manchester airport and the Shropshire hills with the area's history. A quick glance at some of the machinery that remains, including the jaw crusher which could crush up to100 tonnes of stone a day, serves as a stark reminder of its past.
For hundreds of years, up until the 1950s, thousands of poorly-paid workers undertook the dangerous, back-breaking work here which resulted in many of them dying young from inhaling the silica in the rock. Blasting was not used until the 1930s, when the demand was for crushed stone for building roads and airfields.
Understandably, this method was unpopular with local people. Not only was it noisy, of course, but also rocks would sometimes plummet down the hillside, smashing through walls – and, on occasions, buildings.
The main quarry face is still clearly visible, testament to the demand for the hard-wearing type of sandstone, which, at one time, paved 70 per cent of the streets of Macclesfield.
Below our viewpoint at Tegg’s Nose stretched Macclesfield Forest. Long ago it was the Royal Forest, a hunting preserve controlled by the Earl of Chester. Now it is a popular spot for walks. Here, again, it was sublimely peaceful. That is until we got to the side of the Trentabank reservoir, where the stillness was suddenly broken by the raucous cries of the many nesting herons on the opposite bank.
The almost constant squawking brought to mind just how noisy this area must have been in previous centuries; from the thrum of the mills to the blasting or hammering at the quarry above. Some of Macclesfield’s fortunes might have slumped with the decline of these industries, but it has plenty of riches to offer today’s visitors.
AT A GLANCE
WHERE WE STAYED
Jarman Farm (Certificated Site) is a working farm. It has a well-stocked coarse fishing pond for which campers can buy passes. The pretty site is 2.5 acres, some of it sloping, with EHU and simple, but clean, shower and toilet. Jarman Lane, Sutton, Macclesfield. SK11 OHJ. http://www.jarmanfarm.com Tel: 01260 252501.
WHAT ELSE TO SEE AND DO
*Delightful red brick Capesthorne Hall, at Siddington, five miles west of Macclesfield, is the home of the Bromley-Davenport family. It is full of character and treasures, but the family crests carved around the estate belie a distinctly chilling heritage. They feature a thief’s head with a halter of gold about the neck. As custodians of the Royal Forest of Macclesfield, the Davenports held the power of life or death over poachers. The hall is open Sundays, Mondays and Bank Holidays. www.capesthorne.com Tel: 01625 861221.
*At Jodrell Bank Visitor Centre the ‘star’ attraction is the giant Lovell radio telescope. A question and answer session with an astronomer was both enlightening and entertaining. There is a very small exhibition hall with hopes of building a new centre soon. It is well worth a visit for the beautiful 35 acre arboretum with 2000 species of trees and shrubs, lakes and a Solar System Trail (extra charge). www.jb.man.ac.uk
*Cheshire is great for cycling with not too many hills. Cycle Cheshire offers a range of rides. Call in at Tegg’s Nose Visitor Centre for details.
*In Forest Chapel, Macclesfield Forest, every August hundreds of people flock to the tiny church of St Stephen for the traditional rush bearing ceremony. Originally this was to provide a warm dry floor, but nowadays it is a symbol of spiritual renewal.
*Trentabank Heronry has about 20 nests seen from the viewpoint beside the reservoir (best from February- July). Free parking in the adjacent lay-by for up to one hour. You can also see close up CCTV of the nests at the Trentabank Ranger Centre nearby.
*There’s a lovely 11k (seven mile) walk through Macclesfield Forest from Tegg’s Nose Country Park. You begin with panoramic views over the Cheshire plain, partly following the old packhorse trail which would have been used to take salt to Buxton. The route then passes through the forest to Forest Chapel, past Trentabank and Ridgegate reservoirs and finally you follow part of the Gritstone Trail back to base. There are also three circular, waymarked, walks ranging from 30 minutes to four hours from the Trentabank Ranger Centre.
*Shutlingsloe is known as the ‘Matterhorn’ of Cheshire, with stunning views as far as the mountains of North Wales. Reach it via a steep climb from Wildboarclough or an easier, longer route through Macclesfield Forest (park at Trentabank).
TIPS
* For Tegg’s Nose Country Park follow the Buxton Road (A537) out of Macclesfield, from which it is signposted.
*Bring your binoculars; around Macclesfield Forest and Tegg’s Nose you are likely to see woodcock, woodpeckers, nuthatches, flycatchers and tree creepers, whilst buzzards and ravens fly overhead. On the reservoirs are waders and wildfowl, including little grebes and tufted ducks. You might even spot a deer in the forest.
*Macclesfield has a great little indoor market from Monday to Saturday and outdoor market on Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
WHERE TO EAT
*If you are coming from the west, the Cheshire Smokehouse and café is at Vost Farm, Morley Green, Wilmslow. Shop (closed Sundays) sells home-cured meat, smoked fish and has a patisserie. Café is closed Sundays and Mondays. Tel: 01625 548499 www.cheshiresmokehouse.co.uk
*The opulent Belle Époque Brasserie, in King Street, Knutsford, is all Venetian glass mosaic floors and objet d’art. Two course lunch from £11.95 (price correct at time of writing). Tel: 01565 632661. www.thebelleepoque.com
FOR MORE INFORMATION
www.visitcheshire.com
www.macclesfield.silk.museum 01625 612045
www.tattonpark.org.uk 01625 374417
www.cheshire.gov.uk/countryside (For Tegg’s Nose Country Park)
All photos © Robin Weaver
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