Salts Mill

Sir Titus Salt built the mill in 1853 as the centrepiece of his model village; the cloth stopped in 1986, and in 1987 Jonathan Silver bought the vast Grade II* hulk and refilled it with art, books and lunch — above all with David Hockney, whose 1853 Gallery holds one of the largest permanent collections of his work anywhere, hung between cast-iron columns where the spinning frames stood. Silver died in 1997, at 47, and his family has run the mill since — his brother Robin and Robin's wife Patricia founded the Home store inside it — while Saltaire around it took UNESCO World Heritage status in 2001. A private family keeping a world monument open five days a week, with a diner: the boldest independent business model in this guide.