Mission Statement

The Strutt’s North Mill Museum sits within Belper’s North Mill, which is at the centre of UNESCO’s Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.

Through the Museum, the Belper North Mill Trust helps to raise public awareness of the industrial heritage of the Derwent Valley and promote the protection and conservation of this heritage for the public benefit.

The Belper Mills are of significant importance, but most especially the grade 1 listed North Mill (1804), as it is one of the earliest examples of a pioneering fire-proof building, and is therefore recognised as one of the most important buildings from the industrial revolution in the world.

The Museum tells the story of how Jedediah Strutt helped introduce mechanised cotton spinning to the Derwent Valley, sparking the Industrial Revolution, and transforming Belper into the world’s first cotton mill town. This is an important story as it forms a central part of why UNESCO declared the Derwent Valley Mills a World Heritage Site in 2001, since it highlights how this valley is the birthplace of the factory system, due to its pioneering water-powered textile production.

The Museum is run by Belper North Mill Trust and a dedicated group of volunteers.