Feeder at Blankett Mill

[Sunpat]

" Feeder at Blankett Mill" The person, a woman, lived in Witney in 1881 and was 40 plus years of age. Can anyone suggest what this work would have involved?
Many thanks.
Sunpat

[suedent]

There is a website about the Witney Blanket Mills

http://www.witneyblanketstory.org.uk/WBP.asp?navigationPage=Social%20life

I would suspect that a feeder would keep up a supply of materials into the machinery.

[Sunpat]

A very interesting website, Sue, I shall enjoy a good browse:)
Thank you for the link.
Sunpat

[Sunpat]

I recently received the following information from a Witney historian;

"I think this must mean someone who "fed" the machines at a blanket factory. I have certainly come across the term "willey feeder" on Witney census returns.
Willeying (or willowing) was one of the early processes in making a blanket, coming before carding. The willey machine, or willey for short, shook the wool to remove dust, and began pulling apart the fibres.
In the early nineteenth century these machines might at first have been driven by power from a water wheel, with steam power being introduced later (1850s).
The machinery could be dangerous: I believe someone was killed by a willey machine at Farm Mill in Witney in the early 1800s.
Women only did certain jobs at the mill. I will check to see if willey feeding was one of them. Certainly they did work sorting wool so it might be logical if they also then loaded it into the willeys."

Along with the above she suggests, in order to establish the accuracy of the job title recorded in the census;

"If you haven't already looked at the original census enumerator's book, I suggest you do, for it may be that the job was originally recorded as just "Feeder" and a later statistician categorising the jobs has added "Blanket" to show that the work was in a blanket factory."

So a look at the original census enumerator's book should be my next task - one step at time:).
Sunpat