The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and new buildings included the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). One of the new mill owners who contributed to this expansion was William John Porritt (1820-1896), who was born in Ramsbottom. Porritt worked as a young man at Dearden Clough Mill as a hand-loom weaver and eventually became a cotton merchant. By the standards of the day the Porritts were considered to be good employers. Porritt invested heavily in the new seaside resort of St. Annes, and some of the houses there were built using stone from his Helmshore quarries. He sent workers to see the opening of St. Anne's Pier, organising special trains that ran from Helmshore Station. Porritt mills included the water-powered Bridge End Mill and the huge Sunnybank Mill, which at one time was reputed to have the longest loom in the world. Their mills were famous for industrial felts, some of which were used in the production of bank notes. In 1922 Porritt donated the Memorial Gardens with its clock-tower to the village.