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The Flax Breaker or roller. Flax is put through the rollers and it comes out at the bottom broken up. This makes the job of the scutcher easier as it is broken and more flexible. Rollers were dangerous pieces of equipment and many people lost limbs with this machinery. Thanks to Ennish Flax Mill for this footage
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The flax is then brought to the stocks to be scutched by the buffer. He holds a strick of flax where the wooden blade strikes the flax. This would then be passed over to another man the middler and finally scutched more by the finisher. Each man had a different job to do. The shows is collected at the bottom and was used for a wide range of uses from fires, bedding and even payment. Thanks again to Ennish Flax Mill for the footage.
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Beetling. This is one of the last processes in the making of linen. The beetles (heavy wooden hammers) come crashing down upon the linen cloth which is wrapped below. The process could last anything from a day to 2 weeks depending on what type of cloth you were finishing. Beetling was also used for cotton cloth, but less so in Ulster. This footage was taken at Wellbrook Beetling Mill outside Cookstown, now owned by the National Trust.
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Saw Mill. Saw Mills were quite common through Northern Ireland as there was always a strong demand for timber. Water powered saw mills usually worked near to flax and corn mills. Later in the early 1900's Saw Mills began to move to towns and cities being powered by steam engines, turbines or electricity. Close connection to railway lines was vital for a saw mill to be profitable. Saw Mills were noisy and hazardous places to work in and the skilled operative always had to go by the expression "measure twice, cut once". This footage was taken by the folks of Gunton Saw Mill in Norfolk, England. http://www.guntonparksawmill.co.uk/
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