THEMES
Northampton and the First Cotton Spinning Mill 1742
The first cotton spinning mill was built in Northamptonshire in 1742 but just what effect did mass production of yarns in the textile industry bring to those working in cottage industries, how did they cope?
Read MoreSilk making machinery 1745
The silk making machinery of Jacques de Vaucanson revolutionized French silk production but ironically held back the French industrial revolution because of the Luddite attitudes of the French workers.
Read MorePopulation England & Wales 1780
The population of England and Wales in 1780 and its explosion in the next 70 years was a fundamental factor in the Industrial Revolution.
Read MoreIndustrial Revolution source of enlightenment
The Industrial Revolution was a complex period but did it have it’s origins in the Enlightenment period that preceded it? In itself did it create an enlightened period of social reform?
Read MoreSilk Weavers in your family?
The romance of silk weaving, it must have been incredible to produce such a thing of beauty out of the poverty stricken areas of East London. Do you have silk weavers in your family history?
Read MoreJohn Kay 1753-54 House destroyed by machine breakers…keeps inventing
John Kay Inventor persecuted and house destroyed by machine breakers, he didn’t give-up and kept inventing, now that’s entrepreneurial against the odds…and was this the start of organised labour and uprisings?
Read MoreJohn Kay Inventor of the Flying Shuttle
The costs to John Kay inventor of the flying shuttle were significant, as they were to the workers who lost their jobs as a result of mechanisation but his tenacious approach in the face of adversity is part of what made the inventors, visionaries and entrepreneurs of the Industrial Revolution brilliant.
Read MoreFlying shuttle – What is it?
Just what was the flying shuttle and why did it have such an impact on the lives of our ancestors? A simple invention that produced incredible results. A great example of the speed of change during the Industrial Revolution.
Read MoreV Force Cap Badge 1943 – 45
Military cap badge of soldiers in V Force,from WW2, what was this unit in the British Army?
Read MoreCanadian Cap Badge – Can anyone help?
Can anyone help us to identify this Canadian military cap badge?
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