Ellers Mill

Construction and early cotton trade (1780–1800)

Mechanised cotton manufacturing was introduced to Dalston around 1780–1782 by George Hodson, an entrepreneur from Manchester with experience in the Lancashire cotton industry. In 1782, Hodson directed the construction of a four-storey mill constructed of local red sandstone alongside the River Caldew. The site took its name from "ellers", a northern English dialect word for the alder trees that grew along the riverbanks and weir channels.

The mill utilised water power from the Caldew to drive spinning mules and preparatory carding engines, manufacturing fustians, corduroys, velverets, thicksets, and grey calicoes, as well as providing dyeing and finishing operations. Local landholders and tradesmen took financial shares in the enterprise, including John Bewley (1752–1822) of Buckabank, who operated a nearby carpentry and building shop. Following Hodson, management of the works passed to the firm Messrs. Hebson, Lamb, Forster, and Waldie, later recorded in an 1810 Carlisle Journal advertisement as Messrs. Lamb, Hebson, & Co.

The opening of the mills led to significant demographic and economic growth across the parish; Dalston's population increased from 220 families in 1747 to 1,900 people by 1794. A contemporary survey in 1794 noted that Dalston's cotton manufactories employed approximately 500 individuals, including 258 adults and 170 children residing in the parish, while supporting 63 weavers, 40 spinners, and an outwork network of 33 weavers in the adjacent parish of Great Orton.

19th-century operations

During the Napoleonic Wars, regional industrial production shifted towards coarser textiles and heavy provisioning. In 1821, the mill was acquired by Jacob Cowen, trading as Jacob Cowen & Sons. Cowen adapted the mill's carding machinery to produce carded absorbent cotton wool and surgical waddings, supplying medical facilities across Britain and its colonies.

By 1847, the industrial mill race system around Buckabank supplied water power to three cotton mills, an iron forge, a flax mill, two corn mills, and a sawmill.

1901 fire and wartime production

In 1901, a fire caused by a lightning strike burned out the upper floors of the original 1782 building. The mill was subsequently rebuilt as a reinforced two-storey structure of brick and sandstone, and became known locally as "The Cotton Wool Factory".

During both the First World War and Second World War, the facility came under British government control, operating continuously to manufacture surgical waddings, hospital dressings, and emergency medical supplies for the armed forces.

Management: Trimble and Coulthard families

In the late 19th and 20th centuries, directorship and management of the factory expanded to include other local families:

• Trimble family: The Trimbles, who had operated a commercial brewery along the Caldew in Dalston since the late 18th century, provided more than 50 years of executive directorship at Ellers Mill, guiding production through raw-material supply controls during the World Wars and into the post-war era.
• Coulthard family: Members of the Coulthard family entered the management of Cowens Ltd during the 20th century. Over four generations—including Joseph Coulthard, George Coulthard, Michael Coulthard (director until 1994), and Managing Director Jonathan Coulthard—the company shifted production from traditional surgical wadding into non-woven filter media, bio-absorbent rolls, and technical environmental textiles.