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The Bury New Loom

This song, to an excellent tune, is from a broadside printed by Swindells of Manchester in 1804 and comes via Paul Graney. A. L. Loyd, in his 'Folk Song in England' highlights the song as a ‘characteristic piece of the erotic imagery of the industrial age’ containing as it does, the ‘picaresque wit of itinerant weavers’ and yet ‘a relish for (the then new) machinery'. This version is from ‘The Songs of Harry Boardman’ as sung by Mark Dowding. Cock Robin Music, CRM 097. You can buy a CD that includes this song by contacting mark@markdowding.co.uk. You can hear my own (poor) rendering below.

My parents used to live on the road 'between Bolton and Bury' at '555, Bolton Road, Bury' and this song dates back to just such a place at the time of the cotton handloom. We tend to take for granted that a handloom would allow weaving to be done, but no doubt, as the song indicates, it took significant skill to set the loom up so that the warp could be released evenly, the shuttle could run well from side to side and the healds and treadles worked smoothly. There must have been many joiners, and others, skilled in the fabrication, maintenance and setting of hand looms, but we hear little about them. And how nice to have here an insight into the humanity of the young people who worked the handloom at the time of the French Revolutionary wars.

The Bury New Loom

As ah walked between Bolton and Bury,

It was on a moon-shiny night.

Ah met with a buxom young weaver,

Whose company gave me delight.

She sez ‘young feller come tell me,

Is your level and ruler in tune?

Come give me an answer correct

Can you get up and square me new loom?’

Ah said ‘mi dear lassie believe me

Ah am a good joiner by trade,

And many a good loom an’ shuttle

Before in me time I have made.

Yer short lams and jacks and long frame

Ah quickly can put them in tune

Me rule is now in good order

Te get up and square a new loom.’

She took me and showed me her loom

The down on her warp did appear.

The lam-jacks and healds put in motion,

Ah levelled her loom to a hair.

Me shuttle was well in her lathe,

Mi tread it worked well up and down.

Me level stood close to her breast bone

The time ah was reaving her loom.

The cords on me lam-jacks and treadles

At length they began te give way.

The bobbin ah had in me shuttle

Weft in it no longer would stay.

Her lathe it went bang to and fro,

Mi main treadle it still kept in tune.

Me pickers went nickety-nack

All the time ah was squaring her loom.

Me shuttle it still kept in motion,

Her lams she worked well up and down.

The weight in her rods they trembled,

She said she would weave a new gown.

Me strength now began for to fail me,

Ah said ‘it’s now right to a hair.’

She turned up her eyes and said ‘Tommy

Me loom you have got pretty square!’

But when her poor loom pull she let go,

It flew out of order again.

She cried ‘bring yer rule and yer level,

And help me to square it again!’

Ah said ‘dear lassie I’m sorry,

At Bolton ah must be bi noon,

But when ah come back this way

Ah will square up your jerry hand loom!’

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