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Secondary sourcePhotograph30 August 2008

Weir at Arkwright's Mill, Cromford

Mick Lobb · 30 August 2008

A 2008 photograph of the weir that served Arkwright's mill at Cromford, showing the water system behind the factory.

Shows the weir that served Arkwright's Cromford mill, the water system behind his factory, connected to the water frame he developed.

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Photograph of a stone weir with two tiers of waterfall cascading over moss-covered stone into a pool, with a large multi-storey stone mill building with many rectangular windows behind it, a wooden footbridge on the right, and a parked silver car on the left.
Mick Lobb, Weir at Arkwright's Mill, Cromford, 30 August 2008. Photograph from Wikimedia Commons.

About this source

What it is

This is a photograph of the weir at Arkwright's Mill in Cromford, taken by Mick Lobb on 30 August 2008. It shows a stone weir with two tiers of water falling over moss-covered stone into a pool. A large multi-storey stone mill with many rectangular windows stands behind it, with a wooden footbridge on the right and a parked silver car on the left.

Why it matters

The weir was part of the water system that served Arkwright's mill, which helps explain how his factory at Cromford was powered. Arkwright is known for the spinning frame, known as the water frame, so the connection between water and machinery is central to his work. This modern photograph shows the water system as it looks today, rather than in his lifetime.

Look closer

  • How does the weir connect the water in the scene to the mill behind it?
  • What does the modern car and footbridge tell you about how this site is used now compared with Arkwright's time?
  • What questions would you need to answer to know how the water system worked in the 1700s?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Richard Arkwright on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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