Broomstair Terrace, Hyde Rd, Haughton
This row of 10 terraced houses was situated on the north side of Hyde Rd between Broom Grove Ln and St Anne's Rd.
It is believed to date from c.1845 and it is likely that it was built by a factory owner for his workers.
The M67 motorway now runs through the site of this row of houses.
Broomstair Colliery, Haughton
Broomstair Colliery was situated about 205-yards distant from Broomstair Terrace on the south side of Hyde Rd on the approach to the river Tame.
It was reported that this colliery was abandoned in Jan 1889 due to flooding. At this time its proprietors were the brothers
Joseph Watson Sidebotham MP and James Nasmyth Sidebotham of the Hyde and Haughton Colliery Company.
In spite of the above report, Broomstair Colliery did not close. Following the flooding it was sold to the Dukinfield (New) Coal and Cannel Company, which was the new name of the Dukinfield Coal Company. Eventually, the name of this company was changed again to Dukinfield Collieries Ltd. The Dukinfield (New) Coal and Cannel Company operated Broomstair Colliery until 1898 and they closed it somewhere between the 23 Jun 1898 and the end of the year.
Broomstair Mill, Haughton
Broomstair Mill was also situated on the south side of Hyde Rd between Watson St and River Ln/river Tame. Little is known about the early history of this mill but
the presence of a weir across the river immediately to the south of Broomstair Bridge suggests that it was once water powered. It is probable that initially it was a corn mill, similar to Hyde Corn Mill and Arden Mill, short distances downstream on
the Cheshire side of the river. If this conjecture is correct then by 1852 a recession in corn milling might have caused the business to close for the mill reopen for the manufacture of paper, as occurred at Arden Mill.
By 1880 Broomstair Mill was owned by the Hyde Paper Manufacturing Company. In spite of the company name, the mill was in Haughton on the Lancashire side of the river Tame.
Left: Broomstair Weir across the river Tame viewed from the south side of Broomstair Bridge. In the foreground a Manchester Corporation Water Works aqueduct crosses the river
carrying water from Woodhead Reservoir, Longdendale, into the Manchester area and the former Broomstair Mill stands in the background.
Right: Broomstair Valve House on the Hyde side of Broomstair Bridge.
At about 5:45pm on the 6 Feb 1880 a sudden gust of wind through an open door blew waste paper onto a naked gas flame that started a fire. Despite attempts to extinguish the fire by employees followed by the Denton and Hyde fire brigades, the mill became engulfed in flames and was rapidly destroyed.
During the fire three employees lost their lives, namely, Hannah Halton, Harriet Greenhalgh and Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’ Grounds. A fourth employee, Ann Maria Higginbottom, was rescued by her sister, Mary Elizabeth, but she died of severe burns on Sunday, 8 February.
On the 9 Feb, the inquest opened at the Lowes Arms† before the coroner, Mr F W Price. After hearing the evidence, the jury returned verdicts of accidental death for all four employees. On the 10 Feb, Hannah Halton, Harriet Greenhalgh and Elizabeth Grounds were buried together in the graveyard of St George’s Church, Hyde, and on the 11 Feb, Ann Maria Higginbottom was buried in the graveyard of St Mark’s Church, Bredbury.
The table below records the details of the four employees and the death register reference is for Tameside Register Office, Denton Sub-District.
| Name | Age | Address | Tameside RO |
|---|---|---|---|
| HALTON Hannah | 15 | Syddall St, Hyde | DEN/16/49 |
| HIGGINBOTTOM Ann Maria | 15 | Moorside Ln‡, Denton | |
| GREENHALGH Harriet | 17 | Rochfort St‡, Hyde | |
| GROUNDS Elizabeth | 18 | Cricket St‡, Denton |
Following the fire, Broomstair Mill was rebuilt and once again it opened for the manufacture of paper. An examination of Slater’s Trade Directories for 1903, 1909 and 1911 show that the company office was on Watson St and that the company secretary was James Nuttall. In 1911 he was living with his wife and family in Lime Grove, Denton.
By 1931 Broomstair Mill was occupied by B W Wood Ltd, a company that specialised as raisers, finishers and combiners of cotton goods. The Kershaw family eventually became the proprietors of the company and when it went into voluntary liquidation in Oct 1980 the company secretary was M P Kershaw.
