Visit to Rigg’s Mill and Motor Museum

“Wonderful things” Howard Carter is said to have replied when asked what he could see when he first set eyes on the inside of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922.  And this would be our reply if you asked the same question of our visit to this Aladdin’s Cave of exhibits that Peter Rigg has been collecting since he was a teenager.

We were amazed by the treasure trove of industrial, domestic, commercial and vehicular exhibits packed into this former cotton mill.  “I remember those” could be heard as we surveyed the collection of old sewing machines, washing machines and mangles.  “That’s a beauty” we agreed staring at a beautifully preserved E-Type Jaguar.

Peter has amassed an eclectic collection including cars, trucks, motorbikes, bicycles, vacuum cleaners, cameras, printing equipment, radios, televisions, steam engines, old electrical machinery, a blacksmith’s forge and of course several looms and weaving paraphernalia.

We admired the replica of Peter’s great-great grandfather’s shop in Hyde where he made and sold bicycles back in Victorian times and the reconstructed pub with its open fire and brass ornaments but unfortunately no beer!

The highlight though was seeing two of the steam engines running.  One of them used to belong to Fred Dibnah and was called Kathleen.  A horizontal single cylinder steam engine built by Manlove, Alliot & Co. Ltd. of Nottingham, Kathleen was used to drive a large vacuum pump in a factory making herbal remedies.  The other was a Brian Donkin engine used at one time to run machinery in a gas works.

At the end of our guided tour we thanked Peter and headed next door to the cafe where we enjoyed lunch and all agreed that we’d had a marvellous time with a most knowledgeable host seeing lots of “wonderful things”.