Temespan February 2020

TEME VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Mike Harley

On 10th December 21 members demise of the carpet industry
enjoyed our Christmas party which devastated Kidderminster.
whilst being entertained in song, Interspersed with these songs
poetry and word by Heather were poems describing the
Wastie with her lighthearted working lives of people in the
“Spinning Yarns”. carpet industry. One talked of
When the Carpet Museum “knives on the loom”, another
opened in Kidderminster in about dyes going into the River
2013 she became their “Writer Stour and turning the water into
in Residence” for a period of strange colours. We heard about
time. She spent a lot of time a weaver who had an extra job to
interviewing people who had clean the loom which was dreadful
been employed in the carpet but he got overtime to do it to
industry and recorded their the envy of others. Another told
stories for posterity. Furnished of how a woman was employed
with this colourful and rich body in the design office to create a
of material she set about writing body pattern which had to be in
poems and songs. straight lines and laid on the floor
Her first song was inspired by for the approval of the directors
talking to Elizabeth who was (sounded like the casting couch!).
operating a spinning wheel whilst This was regarded as “top secret”
being interviewed. It described work. Inevitably there was a
her job and referred to strange poem at the end entitled “When
terms such as “Niddy Noddy, the weaving stopped.”
Lazy Kate and Mother of all”. Although it was clearly hard
Another song was inspired by Pat work, it appeared that most of
who spoke for 15 minutes without the workers were happy with
stopping to describe how her their jobs. Many had several
winding machine worked. Essen- family members in the carpet
tially the machine kept going industry and worked there
and could not stop until the job throughout their working lives
was done. The song related this with employers that looked after
relentless motion which drove the them.
operator on and on. There was
then a love song relating to two Our next meeting is on Tuesday
people meeting in 1945 in a carpet 25th February, 7.30pm at
factory and getting married called Abberley Village Hall when Chris
“Tying the knot”. The final song Gait will be speaking on “Stanley
was a blues number recalling the Baldwin”. Everyone is welcome.

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