25/10/2024
The Abandoned Milk Factory
The original milking parlour was built here in 1872, and the creamery that it developed into was once the largest employer in the town; it grew dramatically throughout the early twentieth century, the site soon developing to incorporate a range of art deco buildings, spread across a large plot of land beside the river.
A railway line had stopped nearby in those early days, which allowed milk bottled here to reach wholesalers in London the very same day – one of the main factors which fuelled the site’s success.
The subsequent closure of the railway line caused the factory to suffer heavily though, and many jobs were lost as the operation was gradually downsized.
At the peak of the redundancies, there were also two suicides at the site – in one dramatic instance a former worker hanged himself from the walkway that connects the two main buildings, high above the access road.
A fire in 1993 rendered the drying tower unusable, but the damage had already been done by this point – it was Margaret Thatcher who hammered the final nail into the coffin, with the decentralisation of milk collection. The creamery struggled through its final decade, finally closing its doors for good in 2006 – along with the loss of over 100 jobs, and a severe knock to the local economy.
Nowadays the site is considered by most locals to be something of an eyesore and is currently in the process of being demolished.
