Field Note: Papermakers of the lake district

For today’s field note, I bring you a piece of optimism in the form of an article on paper making in the lake district. James Cropper plc has been in the paper making business for 181 years. While their primary business now is material sciences, they still maintain a traditional paper mill. Paper as a material is amazing. It was used in place of glass in windows during the middle ages (waxed/oiled paper provides a reasonably durable translucent material). As an industry, it has also been a recycling trade - for much of history it was made from scrap textiles. The rise of wood cellulose paper came from an increase in demand beyond what the textiles industry could support.