The People
William Lee, William Cotton, and Jedediah Strutt are a few of the names associated with the history of the knitting industry.
Unlike the names of James Watt, Richard Arkwright and Isambard Kingdom Brunel, they are not the well-known inventors of the industrial revolution, but without their contributions, the fashions of today would have looked completely different. We explore key figures from the knitting industry and their role in history.
Inventor of the water frame and mill owner.
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Founder of Nathaniel Corah and Sons in Leicester.
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Inventor of the Cotton's Patent knitting machine.
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Hosiery entrepreneur.
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Author of the 'History of the Machine-Wrought Hosiery and Lace Manufactures'.
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Inventor of the bobbin net machine.
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Hosier who was reputed to have introduced the stocking frame to Hinckley in 1640.
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Clergyman and inventor of the first stocking frame knitting machine in 1589.
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Head of I & R Morley in Nottingham.
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Hosier and entrepreneur from Nottingham.
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Inventor of the Derby Rib Machine.
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Knitter and inventor
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