[2] He served a seven-year apprenticeship with Sir Charles Barry, the architect of the Houses of Parliament and Manchester Art Gallery.

The owner, Abraham Henthorn Stott, had finished his architectural apprenticeship with Charles Barry's practice.

James and Mary Stott (née Henthorn) were married at the parish church of Prestwich-cum-Oldham on 18 June 1821.

Established in Oldham Society and well connected, A. H. Stott was attracting contracts from major cotton spinners.

Initially, workers in the industry gathered together to build their own mill, but when the concept had been proven all started to speculate.

The Abbey Mill Spinning Company was registered in 1875, of the first 490 £5 shares taken up, 200 went to Abraham H. Stott and 200 to George Preston, a civil engineer.

[9] In 1883, the firm moved their Manchester offices to 60 Haworth Buildings, Cross Street a prestigious address and it was here that it remained until 1931.

A. Henthorn Stott, Jnr moved his home to Bowdon, Cheshire in 1894 and the Oldham office closed in 1896.

Jesse Ainsworth Stott moved to Broomfield Rd, in Heaton Moor 1890 and built himself Greystead, on Buxton Road, Stockport in 1895.

As would be fitting for an upwardly mobile Manchester family, A. H. Stott bought the Pensychnant Estate, near Conway in Gwynedd.

His brothers had been concerned about his mental health saying he talked of suicide because he could not persuade his wife and other family members to move to the Pensychnant Estate.

Stott and Son favoured Byzantine-style water towers, the use of horizontal bands of yellow brick above the window, and terracotta ornamentation.

Jesse'ś two sons were both involved in the running of J. Chadwick and Co Ltd, a private limited liability company, who were calico printers, bleachers, finishers and dyers.

For the next fourteen years little work was done in the cotton sector, A. Henthorn Stott who had built a house, Plas Dolydd on the Pensychnant Estate showed and interest in conservation issues such as quarrying at Penmaenmawr and the preservation of Thomas Telford's Menai Suspension Bridge.