Day 82 - Samuel Slater, Nottingham
Today I visited Belper, home town of Samuel Slater before he came to America. Here's the story from the wall of the Derwent Valley Visitors Centre in Belper:
...and many years later, Samuel Slater's great-great-(not sure how many times) granddaughter married a nuclear physicist with the surname "Haugland". One of their sons had a son named "Matt", who is now trying to learn England's meteorology "secrets" and take them (legally) back to America. Or something like that.
The Visitors Centre is located at Belper's North Mill where Slater worked. It has several exhibits about him, including dolls/models of major events in his life and original machinery from the time he was there. Recently, new research has been done (and new discoveries made) about his life which will be featured in a video at the centre in a couple months. The tour guides at the visitors center said they'd mail me a copy of the video when it's available. They were intrigued to meet one of Samuel Slater's relatives all the way from America, but did not speak so fondly of Samuel himself. They admired his skill and intelligence, but called him (as many in England did) "Slater the Traitor" because he stole England's factory secrets and brought them illegally to America.
And that was only part of the trip. Later I met a friend in Derby who showed me around the Nottingham area. Nottingham is known for having the highest crime rate in England, so of course I had to see a couple of the most notorious areas there. They weren't nearly as bad as some places I've been, but definitely bad by England standards. We also went to Nottingham Castle and what remained of the Sherwood Forest. Yes, those are real places, and there was a statue of Robin Hood in front of the castle. Also in front of the castle was Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem, England's oldest inn/pub, established in the year 1189. It was awesome inside!
(click to enlarge)
It was a great trip. Every place I visited exceeded my expectations. And on the way back, I went through two new counties. The total now is 33 (out of 39), with two more planned for Monday.
4 Comments:
Wow!
Haugland!
Yay!
Neat Matt!
A pub that lasted 816 years and counting - longer lasting and more useful than a castle. I'll drink to that.
Very cool Matt! It's great you thought of looking up your ancestry while in England. We went to the Slater Mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island a couple of years ago. We had called ahead and they arranged a private tour for us. It was a lot of fun! I think the Americans thought a lot more of Samuel Slater than the English did! I would love to see the video when you get it. Maybe you could put it on your website or burn it to DVD for us. Have fun!
Ken
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