Hugh Melvin was born on 07 August 1818 in Abbey, Paisley, the sixth of ten children born to parents Robert Melvin and Mary Robertson. His siblings were registered under variations of the surname: Melvin, Melven, Melvel and Melville.
His parents Robert Millwain and Mary Robertson gave in their names for proclamation of marriage on 25 November 1807 in Neilston at which time they gave 3s/6d for the Poor of the parish.
By 1841 Hugh was employed as a Calico Printer Journeyman. He was living in Barrhead village, in the parish of Neilston, Renfrewshire with his mother and six of his siblings. His two younger brothers Robert and William were employed as apprentice Calico Printers. On 17 June 1843 Hugh married Rachel Wilson in Neilston, Renfrewshire. They subsequently had ten children.
In 1847 Hugh and his brother James established the Roebank Printworks on the side of the Roebank Burn, which lies on the boundary between Beith and Lochwinnoch. They ran a small printing works here until 1862 when they left to set up a business in Airdrie.
Hugh Melville returned to Roebank in 1871 and carried on the printing works himself with two sleeping partners. The Roebank Printworks then consisted of five main buildings with several smaller buildings surrounding them. The first building, consisting of four floors, held the washing and drying machines; offices, including the designer’s room and the foreman printer’s office; receiving rooms; general warerooms and the preparing room. The second building was devoted to the printing operations, with each of the four floors having ten large tables. The third building was devoted to steaming, where the patterned silk was suspended, so that the steam could seal the colour. The fourth building was the block house. The fifth single-storey building held the steam boiling plant and finishing room. The smaller buildings were devoted to the mixing and preparation of colours, block cutting and the printing of goods for the British market.
In 1877 Hugh took on as his partner, his nephew James Melville, who had studied design in both Glasgow and Paris. James designed patterns on silk for the Rangoon market, making mostly head-handkerchiefs in two lengths for the Indian market and some dresses. The Roebank Printworks earned a world-wide reputation for their designs and the high quality of their finished goods. As a result, many silk printers in India tried to reproduce their designs. The designs were first drawn onto tracing paper, before being taken to the block room where the pattern was recreated on blocks of wood or moulds, or for special work on copperplate blocks.
Each of the blocks received a number so that its pattern could be easily identified, and they were carefully stored, along with the associated stamped paper pattern, in the two-storey block house which held numerous shelves with each pattern having its own place so that it could be easily retrieved. A copy of the pattern, along with its number, was sent to the merchants both at home and abroad, so that they could place an order for the number of items required.
Before the pattern could be impressed onto the silk by hand it went through a series of processes. Upon leaving the silk weaving loom, 64 pieces of silk were sewed together, end to end, then washed with soap and partially dried to extract excess water, before being taken to the stove to finish off the drying process. The colours being used on the print were carefully blended in one building of the printworks. The colours were mixed with gum which kept the colours from blurring during the printing process. In the print shop experienced printers, accompanied by an apprentice, impressed the block pattern with the appropriate colour onto the silk. Fresh paint was reapplied to the block each time it was used. Each colour in the pattern had to be applied separately.
After Hugh retired the business was carried on by his sons Hugh (Jnr) and William Wilson. In 1922 his son Hugh Melville’s name appeared in a list of members of the Society of Dyers and Colourists. By 1935 Robert Black, who served his apprenticeship with the company, was the Manager of the Roebank Printworks.
Hugh Melville died 16 October 1902, 11.15pm at Gowanlea, Roebank Road, Beith, aged 82. In his private life, Hugh Melville was a life-long adherent of the Liberal Party and for many years was honorary president of the Beith Liberal Association. His public funeral at Beith cemetery on Monday 20 October 1902 was attended by many members of the local community and his business associates. His headstone, which is inscribed on three sides, provides additional information on his wife, Rachel Wilson, their son William Wilson Melville, and William’s wife, children and grandson. It also reveals that Hugh’s grandson 2nd Lieutenant Joseph Thomson Melville of the Highland Light Infantry was killed at High Wood, France on 15 September 1916 and his great grandson William Lewis Melville of the R.A.F., was killed on active service on 28 February 1943.