Sir Richard Arkwright

Robert Clark (The Literary Encyclopedia)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.05: English Writing and Culture from the Glorious Revolution to the French Revolution, 1689-1789.
Vol. editors: Paul Baines (University of Liverpool), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Pat Rogers (University of South Florida), Nicholas Seager (University of Keele)

Dates

Born 3 Jan 1733
Died 3 Aug 1792
Activity 1752-1792

Places

Born in England
Active in England

Activities

Primary

Engineer
Inventor

Resources

Richard Arkwright’s genius was to perfect mechanical means of spinning thread, and then to integrate the new technologies for cleaning raw cotton fibre, spinning and weaving into a comprehensive industrial process. In effect he founded the factory system which was to transform all of human life.

Relatively little is known about the humble origins of Richard Arkwright. He was born in Preston on December 23^rd 1732, the son of a tailor. He had very little education, attending only evening school in winter time—not the local Bluecoat School—and was apprenticed to a barber and wig-maker, moving to Bolton in 1750. There he set up as a barber on his own account and married on March 31^st 1755, his wife …

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1695 words

Citation: Clark, Robert. "Sir Richard Arkwright". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 February 2004; last revised 01 June 2005. [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=150, accessed 23 November 2024.]

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