Online Talk: The Industrial Museum at Ratingen - the other Cromford Mill

Presented by: The Arkwright Society at Cromford Mills

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0	ONLINE: Zoom
P	Thursday 24th June, 2021
N	6:45pm

Event information

Join us for a fascinating tour of Cromford Mill, except not the one in Derbyshire. This Cromford Mill sits on Cromforder Allee in Ratingen, Germany, and has connections with the Derbyshire mill going back to 1783. Johann Gottfried Brügelmann set up this Mill, considered the first recognised factory on continental Europe, using Arkwright's machinery and working practices. Cynthia Beisswenger, one of the guides at Ratingen, will take you on tour of the site, now a Textile Museum, starting with an introduction to Brügelmann, his home, the Herrenhaus, before moving into the factory itself which now houses the rest of the museum. The museum has a range of replica working Arkwright machines and Cynthia will show these running and explain their function. This is a unique opportunity to see working Arkwright machines and imagine how they would have been used in the mills in Derbyshire. Cynthia will finish by introducing Brügelmann's daughter in law, Sophie, and the important part she played in the success of the factory.

Cynthia was born in Birmingham but her father came from Long Eaton – just down the road from Cromford – hence her longstanding interest in Cromford’s history and development. Cynthia studied French and German and for most of her working life was a technical translator working in large companies in Belgium and Ratingen, Germany. Cynthia has been a member of the Förderverein in Ratingen since the museum was opened in 1996. Since retiring Cynthia does guided tours for Cromford Ratingen in English and German and translates the temporary exhibition texts for English-speaking visitors. Occasionally Cynthia also translates for the LVR-Industriemuseum, the group of industrial museums to which Cromford belongs. Cynthia has been a member of the Arkwright Society for many years and with her husband has walked the whole length of the Derwent Valley Way to see as many mill locations as possible. Cotton has also led her to silk and she is now also helping with an EU Horizon 2020 project – Mingei - at the Haus der Seidenkultur (Silk Museum) in Krefeld.

This online talk will be run by the Arkwright Society.

ZOOM DETAILS: We Got Tickets will send you a zoom link to join the session prior to the event.

TECH REQUIREMENTS: You will need a laptop/desktop/tablet computer with video and audio.
You will also require a reliable internet connection. Please make sure your set-up satisfies the technical requirements before joining – we cannot offer refunds if you discover your device or broadband connection is not suitable for the event.

VENUE: At home in front of your computer.

Door time: 6.45pm. Talk start time: 7pm.