Last updated at 17:15, Monday, 16 July 2012

WE turn the clock back to Christmas 1949 for this picture of a party held at the former Thomas Nesbitt’s textile factory at Millom.

PARTY TIME: Festive celebrations in 1949 for staff at the Millom Nesbitt’s textile factory EM ARCHIVE REF: S79671B

Nesbitt’s factory was under the Market Square clock tower in what used to be the indoor market until the late 1930s.

The picture was kindly provided by Doug Holmes, of Church Walk, Millom.

We have been able to name a good proportion of the those shown on the picture.

Among them, not in order, are Audrey Satterthwaite, Kathleen Cunningham, Ethel Fallows, Hilda Bradley, Jean Skillicorn, Lena Harris, Marion Nesbitt, Sheila Cunningham, Jean Ward and Sheila Ward.

Also pictured are Nancy Long, Nora Milligan, Nancy Long, Dorothy Long, Jean McGary, Shirley O’Brien, Betty Middleton, Rena McNight, Audrey Nesham and Natalie Cunningham.

Others identified include Nellie Cunningham, Margaret Mawson, Madge Barnes, Muriel Crellin, Francis Gilchrist, Madge James, Jean Bennetta, Winnie Thornber, Molly Gill, June Langridge, Elsie Evans, June Cunningham and Adele Koska.

This article is a Black Combe School pupil’s view of a visit to the Nesbitt’s factory is in 1986 and was recorded as part of the BBC Domesday Project.

The pupil noted: “We went to Nesbitt’s, a factory that makes nighties, pyjamas, quilted dressing gowns, sweatshirts, dresses and shorts.

“Nesbitt’s altogether have 55 workers.

“Nesbitt’s was opened in Millom because the Manchester site was bombed so they had to find somewhere else to open the factory.

“They moved to Millom because people were in great need of work.

“Mr Nesbitt opened the factory here in 1944. They called the factory Nesbitt’s after the man who owned it. He is now dead.

“The factory is open from 7.30am to 4pm.

“It has a lot of machines like the cutter, printer, sewing, overlock, steam iron, button holer and the bagging machines.

“They sell one third of their work to catalogues, one third goes to wholesalers and one third goes to chain stores.

“All the workers are paid a price for each job.”

In 1986, some 900 years after William the Conqueror’s original Domesday Book, the BBC devised the Domesday Project.

More than a million people contributed to this digital snapshot of the country.

People were asked to record what they thought would be of interest in another 1,000 years.

Schools and community groups surveyed over 108,000 square km of the UK and submitted more than 147,819 pages of text articles and 23,225 amateur photos, cataloguing what it was like to live, work and play in their community.

The project used the cutting edge technology of the day, and the data was eventually presented on a special type of laser-disc, read by a BBC master computer and navigated using an innovative tracker-ball pointing system.

But the technology didn’t catch on and the computers became very expensive for schools and libraries to buy.

Very few people ever got to see the fruits of all of their hard work.

Now the project has been brought up to date with the help of The National Archives.

There are more of the Black Combe School entries about life in the Millom area in 1986 at http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/domesday/dblock/GB-316000-480000

First published at 16:11, Monday, 16 July 2012
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk