A varnish company existed in Haltwhistle in 1860. In the 1930s the Smith and Walton Paint Factory was founded and went on to become a global enterprise until it finally closed in 2002.

 

 

This project has gathered stories and pictures from across the history of the several companies which occupied the site and the people who worked there:

 

* Children have interviewed people two generations older

* We have archived hundreds of photogrphs,

* Digitised old films

* Interviewed dozens of people who worked in the factory.

* Children from four local schools have made animations based on people's stories

 

This website gathers much of the evidence of a once vibrant site, now standing largely empty, and brings it back to life.

 

If you have any stories or photographs you would like us to find a place for, get in touch