Regent Mill

Regent Mill is a cotton spinning mill dating from 1906, with later 20th-century alterations and additions. Designed by G. Stott for the Regent Mill Company, it was likely built as a ring spinning mill and in use as such by 1915. The mill is constructed using rolled iron and steel beam, brick arch fire-proof construction, supported on cast-iron columns. The exterior is brick-clad with decorative brick detailing and ashlar dressings.

The mill comprises a single block incorporating the spinning mill, preparation areas, warehousing, power transmission features at the southeast corner, and two-storey card room extensions to the rear. The main block is four storeys high and consists of 42 bays, with towers at the northeast and northwest angles, and pilasters defining the southern angles. Triple windows are set between the pilasters on the first and second storeys. Deep corbelled recessed panels contain ground floor and upper storey windows, and continuous stone sills and stone bands run along the first and upper storeys. The eaves feature arcaded corbelling.

The northwest corner incorporates a main stair tower with triple windows at each stage, including stone bands in the projecting upper storey. A pyramidal roof is surmounted by wrought-iron brattishing with a flag pole. A subsidiary tower is situated at the northeast angle. The engine house projects from the southeast corner, displaying triple round-arched windows. The original chimney no longer survives.

The mill demonstrates the continued use and development of brick arch floor construction by the Stott architectural dynasty, at a time when alternative concrete floor construction methods were being explored in rural settings. Originally powered by an 1800 horsepower vertical steam engine manufactured by Buckley and Taylor, the mill represents a near-complete example of an early 20th-century ring spinning mill. Despite subsequent alterations, the building retains distinctive architectural quality and remains a significant element of Oldham's industrial heritage, reflecting the town’s prominent position in global cotton production.