LEIGH'S historic Spinning Jenny plaque has found an impressive new home a century after its debut.

The newly restored tribute to Leigh's unlucky history has been permanently mounted in a magnificent display in Leigh Town Hall foyer -- thanks to the Leigh branch of Soroptimists.

The group adopted the restoration of the green and white tiled panel for its Leigh Borough Charter Centenary Mission in 1999, and raised £3,500 for the work.

The group was recently joined by the mayor, Coun John Hilton, and councillors at the unveiling of the new feature, which relates its history.

It was removed when the King Street-Spinning Jenny Street shops, between the Leigh Corporation and LUT bus stations, were cleared in 1990, to make way for the by-pass, and was stashed away.

The memorial came into being about 1900, when George Olivant built three shops and the Regal Cinema on Spinning Jenny Court. This was associated with the nearby Georgian house of unlucky inventor Thomas Highs, and his daughter Jenny.

Highs was born in 1720, and ran a reed-making business in King Street. Following improvements to weaving looms, especially the flying shuttle, hand spinners were unable to keep pace with the hand loom weavers' demand for thread.

This prompted the Society of Arts to offer a prize of £50 for the invention of a machine capable of spinning six threads at once.

Highs worked with a neighbouring clockmaker, John Kay, on model machines and on his own perfected a six thread machine -- but was just beaten to the award in 1763.

He went on to construct improved versions for 20 and 25 threads, and the machines were named after his daughter.

However, Highs turned to spinning by rollers to leave James Hargreaves to perfect the famous Spinning Jenny in 1770.

The designer, again helped by Kay, invented a roller, spinning, water frame machine powered by water in 1769, but was unable to raise capital to build a water-powered factory.

Unfortunately, Richard Arkwright, a Bolton wig maker, who bought his hair in Leigh, had capital and obtained details of Highs's secret invention via Kay, and went on to establish mills in the East Midlands after taking out a patent, while Highs continued to make machines for other manufacturers.

Arkwright's patent was challenged in three trials, but at the third, Highs was a witness and Arkwright's patent was removed in 1785 -- but only after he made his fortune.

To commemorate the historic association, Olivant incorporated the Spinning Jenny panel in a shop first-floor window, facing Spinning Jenny Street, where it graced the views for more than 90 years.

When it was removed, a replica was constructed in the new pub, the Goose on the Spinning Jenny, at the site.

Soroptimists Avis Freeman said: "This completes our project and the whole unit looks magnificent. Everyone should go and have a look."