1764

James Hargreaves

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James Hargreaves, a Lancashire weaver, invented the spinning jenny after seeing a wheel topple and keep turning. Though his machine transformed spinning, he patented it too late; copies spread, profits went elsewhere, and he died in obscurity despite his revolutionary idea.

The spinning jenny sparked a transformation far beyond Hargreaves. By multiplying a spinner’s output, it gave Richard Arkwright the momentum to build stronger machines, driving cotton into factories and powering industrial Lancashire - the spark that powered the rise of industrial Lancashire.

This was truly revolutionary

A N Wilson