Saturday, 29 April - Midlands

For the second day in a row we awoke to bright sun.  The clear skies didn't last but it was a great start and the light clouds never became a threat. Pam had laid out a slew of places they thought would be interesting and our main goal today was to go to Nottingham Castle. Nancy asked that we stop at the Ruddington Framework Knitters' Museum since it was on our way.  We didn't have a clue as to what to expect from the knitting museum, but it didn't promise to be all that exciting.  We found Ruddington without all that much trouble. The town was quite small so even though the museum was tucked into a very small side street, we found it.  We joined three local women for a docent lead tour of the factory owner's home - very modest.  The docent, an older, diminutive woman with a great sense of humor, did such a great job of explaining the Parker's house and the economics of the time, 1749, that we were enchanted and wanted to know more.

I guess before we go on it would best to tell you what we were there to see.  The factory made knitted hosiery and some had lace on the top.  Depending on the style of the times the stockings were worn by both men and women.  The factory used machines, called knitting frames, to knit stockings as a flat piece of work.  The flat forms were then hand sewn into a stocking form and depending on the times may have been embroidered. Each of the early frame knitting machines was hand made and there are basically no interchangeable parts.  Present day home knitting machines use the same principles and Nancy recognized many of the parts.  Each pass of the knitting frame requires 8 different motions by the operator.  The operators would set up a rhythm and an experienced operator could do about one inch per minute.  The machines were fairly noisy when one machine was operating.  The factory we visited was set up with twenty machines crammed into a small room.  When all the machines were running, the noise must have been incredible.

After the owner's house we left the docent and crossed the courtyard and went upstairs to the factory.  A young college age student was waiting to give us a demonstration on the machine.  He let Nancy try her hand at operating the machine and she was able to get through several cycles.  She wasn't yet up to the rhythm of a seasoned operator but she was getting there.  It involved both feet and both hands. About this time the three local women went their way and we were left with the student volunteer.  As our questions became more technical he introduced us to the mechanic who was restoring some of the machines.  The mechanic had been working on this class of machine for the last thirty years, both professionally and as a volunteer, and knew them intimately.  He was so impressed with our questions and our reactions to his answers that we were invited behind the scenes into the workshop where we were shown what they had to do to keep the machines running.  The guys really like to see how the stuff was made.  They even had the molds to form the lead used to hold the replacement needles

Left - Nancy trying her hand at framework knitting machine.  The machine requires both hands and has three treadles.  The operator must slide on the seat - therefore the leather.  The tears in the fabric are the result of broken needles - not Nancy's fault. Above - a circular sock knitting machine

The mechanic then took us upstairs where they had a display of circular sock knitting machines.  These were not technically part of the original factory but did show the form of the next step in the evolution of the machines. We then got our bag lunches and joined the two mechanics in the tearoom for an interesting discussion of local Football (soccer), politics, travel and life in general.  We spent a considerable time at this facility but we had such a good time that none of us had any regrets.  Nancy and Pam bought some of the beautiful machine-knit scarves for presents.

For more information on the knitting click HERE to go to Nancy's page          If the HERE is black and not blue, her page isn't ready yet and you'll have to wait

From Ruddington we went to Nottingham.  The Nottingham Castle is atop a knoll in the center of town.  Nottingham was central to the legend of Robin Hood. And in real life John became King.  Having King John on the throne was important in history because John was forced to sign the Magna Carta document.  The Magna Carta limited the power of the king and increased the power of the people ? the precursor to democracy

Nottingham Castle was to the right of the more modern building

The modern Nottingham surrounds the old castle grounds - this is only one of the four sides

Nottingham Castle is an earthwork motte and bailey fortress, founded in 1067 by William the Conqueror. In 1170, King Henry II completed the stone castle making the site the principal royal fortress in the Midlands.  After the English Civil War, the castle was slighted and then all the standing remains were destroyed in the building of a 17th century mansion.  The ramparts were impressive, the setting was beautiful, and the mansion very regal, but the whole thing was now a city park and didn't have much to offer.  Much more interesting was the Museum of Nottingham life at Brewhouse Yard at the base of the knoll.  Our ticket to the Castle included entry to this museum as well

J&N and B&P sitting at the feet of Robin Hood

The Brew house of the Brewhouse Yard - the Castle Ramparts above opened in 1118 - the oldest continuous operating pub in England

The museum features artifacts mostly from the 20th century with quite a bit of space dedicated to the WWII and the bombing of Nottingham in 1941.  The displays were fascinating and we browsed until the Museum closed at 4:30.pppThe trip home was badly timed because the local Football (soccer) match had just let out and we had to join the homebound fans.  It was obvious that the local team had lost because the fans were sedate and very quiet.  Other than that the trip was uneventful

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