This was the first silk yarn mill in England circa 1792, at the village of Galgate in the county of Lancashire in north western England. During the American civil war period, the silk yarn produced here could not be sold. The workers offered to work for half of their wages if their employment could continue. The owner agreed and decided to store the silk yarn until the American civil war ended , after which the owner sold all the saved stock. Remarkably the owner then repaid the workers the other half of their lost salary plus an additional 5% extra. The mill continued operating until the early 1970s although primarily for synthetic fibres by that time, with a small amount of silk yarn produced. When it closed, Britain had no other mill for silk yarn. Now a part of the site is converted into student accommodation for the nearby Lancaster University campus.

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