ludlow festival, The River Teme and The River Corve

Ludlow

ludlow festival The River Teme And The River Corve ludlow festival Ludlow festival, Ludlow castle, whitcliffe, the river teme and the river corve, leisure, Ludlow, glove making, town centre, river views, river birds, tanning, bridges, weirs, town, peaceful, holiday cottages,holiday in Ludlow, ludlow festival, You may find the text below interesting to read if you are planning to stay in our holiday cottages. From the times of the early settlement in Ludlow's history, the river Teme was tamed and channeled by 4 weirs, and the powerful current, so produced, was utilised by the many mills along its course around the town. At one time there were as many as 11 mills, powered by the River Teme and the River Corve, they were used by a variety of industries among them corn milling and paper making. But there were two more prosperous uses of this plentiful and free powerful water current. Firstly there was the process of wool fulling, there were 3 fulling mills, this involved the washing of the wool, using a soft friable clay, which was an 'earthy hydrous silicate of alumina' now called fuller's-earth. This led to the manufacture of woolen cloth and blankets,. At that time the town's prosperous economy was based on wool. Secondly, and perhaps more important for the ordinary inhabitants, was the processing of leather, and this was the reason the trade of glove making moved into the town centre. This industry of glove making was so successful in the late 18th century, that as many as a thousand Ludlovians were employed in this trade alone. So we can see that these two rivers played a large part in the placement of Ludlow, and its early prosperity. It is hard to imagine, as we look at the idyllic river views now, with the majestic bridges, flowing weirs and the river birds, ducks, swans, kingfishers and herons, all so peaceful to watch, how different it must have been. With all that industry going on, especially on the river Corve where most of the tanning was carried out, these areas must have been some of the noisiest and busiest places in the town. But then gloves are now no longer a fashion item, and the other industries moved elsewhere. In our times the river is more a source of leisure and pleasure, peaceful activity and quiet walks. People on holiday in Ludlow and locals are seen fishing by the river bank. Canoeists also come from far and wide to challenge the river, liking its swiftness and sudden surprises. For the locals and visitors, young and not so young, a pleasure has been, and probably still is, hiring a river rowing boat from the jetty at the Linney playing fields, which lies beside the Teme overlooked by the Ludlow Castle and Whitcliffe. Then to row down the river towards Batty's Island, (a local name given to a small mid river island) and when you get to the rope that tells you to turn round and go back to the jetty, the real pleasure then, is just slipping under that rope, and for the pure joy of it, rowing on just a bit further :-.