A unique archive, telling the story of Bradford's development as the centre of the wool textile trade, is taking shape at Bradford & Ilkley Community College.

Textile expert John Allison - who was employed at Salts Mill for 25 years before turning to teaching - is hard at work collecting and cataloguing thousands of items which will become the Bradford Textile Archive.

The collection will be housed at the college's Yorkshire Crafts Centre, due to open in spring 2000.

The many artefacts, documents and fabric swatches rescued from dusty attics and unearthed from cupboards will form a great resource for students and historians, Mr Allison, 65, said.

"We have found things in cupboards, attics, cellars, you name it. A lot of things in our collection are things you won't find anywhere else. Some of the fabrics they used to make can't be made any more because the expertise and technology have gone.

Local companies including Denholme Velvets and Hind Robinson & Son Ltd have donated their own archive material to the college.

Items include fabrics designed by surrealist painter Salvador Dali, the minutes of old groups like the Woolcombers' Mutual Association and workbooks belonging to the textile design 'class of 1880'.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.