Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill, England

Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill was an abandoned relic of Manchester’s industrial history, a familiar part of the landscape of Greenfield for over 100 years. Once a bustling hub of production employing 1000 workers. This sprawling mill and its once-mighty machines fell silent in 2001. After over twenty years decaying behind (mostly) closed doors, the story of Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill came to a close with its demolition in 2023/2024.

This photographic collection records my artistic representation of the fallen paper mill, based on two visits in 2017 and 2023.

History of Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill

Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill is a prominent chapter in Oldham’s industrial history. Its roots trace back to the Crompton family, who established a paper mill in Stoneclough, Manchester, in 1829. At that time, the company traded under Ralph Crompton and Nephews, Bleachers and Papermakers, Stoneclough and Manchester. 

Robert Fletcher joined the firm in his twenties, shortly after the Stoneclough mill opened. It wasn’t long before this ambitious young worker was made manager of the bleaching department, before rising through the ranks and becoming manager of the entire mill. Ultimately, the last remaining Crompton brother entrusted Robert with the business upon his death. The paper mill continued to flourish under his and his sons’ management for decades, eventually becoming a limited company in 1897 and employing 200 people. In 1921, they opened a second mill, focused on the manufacture of cigarette paper, and this is the one that my photographs document. Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill had over 1000 employees and ran seven paper making machines at its peak production.

Closure of the paper Mill (2001)

However, the post-war years brought challenges that Fletcher’s paper mill could not overcome. The rise of cheaper imports, reduced demand for cigarette paper, and the general decline of UK industry spelled the end. By the 1980s, the mill was operating at a fraction of its former capacity, but production managed to limp on under the new ownership of conglomerate Melton Medes. Finally, the Stoneclough mill closed in 2000 as a last-ditch attempt to save the business from going under. It was too little, too late. Unfortunately, the business could not be saved, and only a year later, creditors formally applied to have the business wound up. Staff about to start the morning shift were ordered to leave the site, packing their belongings into paper bags and leaving as the doors were locked behind them.

Demolition of Fletcher’s Paper Mill (2023-2024)

In October 2023, demolition work began on site. Over the winter, work progressed steadily. One silver lining was that as the work progressed, access opportunities arose for those daring enough to evade security and sneak inside. By April 2024, most of Fletcher’s paper mill was reduced to rubble, and the rest soon followed. A new housing development will be built on the brownfield site.

Exploring The Abandoned Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill

My first visit to this Fletcher’s paper mill was in 2017, when I dropped down into the dark machinery behind the beaters. During my second visit in December 2023, I entered the mill through a demolished section of the main building. Slipping into the sprawling complex via an old air duct, avoiding security . For the purposes of this descriptive article, I will follow the process of paper production as it would have flowed through the factory. Moving from one room to the next in order. I will then move on to discuss some of the ancillary buildings I visited, away from the main production cluster.

Pulping Preparation and paper machine

Our journey begins in the yellow-walled pulping area, located on the uppermost floor. Bales of chopped hemp and flax chips arrived here, ready for transformation into paper pulp. Workers loaded raw materials into enormous spherical containers, known as “pots”. The material was boiled under pressure in caustic acid for hours. Adjacent to this area, I found several decaying offices and a small single-room laboratory. Nearby, rows of rusted lockers line the walls in the boot room. Workers would have stored their personal belongings, but now the doors hang open and ferns grow happily on the floor.

From the pulping area, I followed the pipes to the next section of the mill. Machines called Bertrams Beaters line this long hall. These pale blue and beige machines would macerate and break up the pulp fibres. Now they lie dried up and dormant, metal blades frozen in place. Nearby, in a dark corridor, I discovered a small but interesting control room. A small corridor off to the side of the beater hall led to another locker room.

Next, the slurry was piped into the rolling machine hall. Here, the pulp entered the “wet end” of the paper machine. It was evenly spread out onto a moving wire mesh called a Fourdrinier machine. Subsequently, this still soggy sheet (“wet leaf”) would pass through a series of press rollers, squeezing out more water. At the “dry end” of the hall, heated cylinders evaporate the last of the water. Lastly, heavy rollers called “calendars” smooth the paper.

The paper making room was one of the highlights of my visit to Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill. An expansive room filled with immense rollers and conveyors. A playground to explore and climb to get the best vantage points for my photos. Green ferns add a pop of colour, growing out of cracks in the walls and emerging from under machinery.

Paper Finishing area, and surrounding rooms of interest

In the finishing area, the paper was cut to the desired size and rolled onto reels. This area, now mostly empty, still held traces of its former life. In 2017, during my first visit, the room was filled with spooling machines. During a 2023 revisit, workers had removed nearly all of them, likely in preparation for the mill’s imminent demolition. The quality control laboratory, partially demolished, was an interesting additional find. A few forklift trucks were nestled in the corner of the finishing area, their once-bright paint now dulled by years of inactivity.

Interestingly, the finishing room felt like the heart of the factory. Stairways led to various rooms that encircled the upper floors this space: offices, a boardroom, and even a design room filled with blueprints and technical documents. I also discovered a small medical bay, complete with a hospital bed. On the upper floor, overlooking the finishing room floor, was a small breakroom canteen. The wallpaper sloughing off to reveal red, peeling paint underneath.

A quick stop at Boiler House & (former) turbine hall

Scrambling through a window, I enter a large, empty building, which I think used to be the turbine hall. Sadly, the turbines are long gone, so I turn my attention to a narrow passageway covered a make-shift hessian sack curtain. Following the pipes takes me to the boiler house.

This impressive space, filled with pipes covered in peeling paint, is a real industrial decay wonderland. The four large boilers dominate the room, their greet paint faded and flaky. There are several black control panel banks lining the walls, with glorious dials and heavy switches. The heat that once radiated from these massive machines must have been immense, as they worked tirelessly, powering the mill and driving its production lines.

THe Old mill kitchens and decaying canteen

A large section of this ancillary building housed kitchens, complete with retro appliances, including a charmingly photogenic old mixer. Next door is a paper storage area, with large reels of paper neatly stacked and seemingly ready to ship. I suspect that this room was originally a large canteen, that turned into a storage room somewhere in the distant past for some reason. Upstairs, a fantastically decayed lunch room held crockery and utensils stacked chaotically on shelves and laid out haphazardly on the rickety table. On the shelves were also some interesting rolls of company meal coupons for curry, chips, and sandwiches. Yummy!

Fletcher’s Paper Mill Social Club: The Final Stop

The social club was built in 1937 and closed down with the rest of Robert Fletcher & Sons Paper Mill. There was a bar where workers could unwind with a pint and enjoy a game of snooker after a hard day in the mill. There was also an auditorium with a stage where children of millworkers and the nearby villages would practice and perform. Unfortunately, vandals had severely damaged the social club bar. Additionally, someone had removed nearly all of the floorboards from the auditorium.