Sir Thomas Lea JP 1st Baronet
(1841-1902)
politician, carpet manufacturer, Justice of the Peace, Member of Parliament (1868-1874), Member of Parliament (1880-1885), Member of Parliament (1886-1900), and 1st Baronet Lea of The Larches and Sea Grove (from 1892)
Commemorated on 1 plaque
Slingfield Mill was built in 1864 by Thomas Lea. The architects were Lockwood and Mawson of Bradford, well known for their textile mills. The finest yarns for the carpet industry were spuin on machinery driven by a steam engine powered from boilers in the nearby boilerhouse with its square chimney. In 1920 Lea Ltd became part of Carpet Trades who sold it to Brintons in 1948. By the late 1980's yarn spinning had ceased and in 2003 the Mill became a retail outlet.
Slingfield Mill, Weavers Wharf, Kidderminster, United Kingdom where they built