During the industrial revolution of the late 18th Century, West Yorkshire was the woollen capital of the world. One legacy from that time is the Leeds-Liverpool canal which, at 127 miles, is the longest canal in Britain. It's over 250 years old and helps to provide a link from the Irish Sea to North Sea. Beside the canal and the River Aire sits the enormous edifice of Salt's Mill at Saltaire, near Bradford. Built in 1853 by Titus Salt, it formed part of a groundbreaking model village which included houses, churches, meeting halls and other community buildings. At the time it was Europe's largest factory and one of its largest rooms was on the sixth floor. Measuring 600 feet in length, the room, known as The Shed, was where hundreds of workers turned out miles of cloth each day on large weaving machines. The noise would have been deafening. Despite the noise and heat, Salt's Mill provided better working conditions for mill employees than most other textile factories.
However, the textile industry eventually declined, and the Mill became largely redundant by the 1980s. The late Jonathan Silver bought the Mill in 1987 and had a vision to transform it into a cultural and commercial complex. Today the factory has been converted into a smart art gallery with works by Bradford artist David Hockney, a cafe, offices and shops. | 
