History of the cotton manufacture in Great Britain: with a notice of its early history in the East, and in all the quarters of the globe ... and a view of the present state of the manufacture / By Edward Baines, jun.

  • Baines, Edward, Sir, 1800-1890.
Date:
[1835]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: History of the cotton manufacture in Great Britain: with a notice of its early history in the East, and in all the quarters of the globe ... and a view of the present state of the manufacture / By Edward Baines, jun. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    122/606 (page 102)
    the London market was chiefly supplied by them with those ma- terials of apparel, then in almost general use throughout the nation.” Humphrey Chetham, “when high-sheriffe of this county, 1635, discharged the place with great honour; inasmuch that very good gentlemen, of birth and estate, did wear his cloth at the assize, to testifie their unfeigned affection to him ; and two of them (John Huntley, and H. Wrigley, esqs.) of the same pro- fession with himself, have since been sheriffs of the county.” (Vol. i. p. 554.) This passage shows that fustians were “ in almost general use throughout the nation” whilst the Chethams were in business; and as Humphrey Chetham was high- sheriff in 1635, when he was fifty-five years of age, we may conclude that he had then dealt in that article for a number of years. Of course, fustians must have been made at Manchester and Bolton for a consider- able time before the publication of Lewes Roberts’s book. The spread of the manufacture was afterwards by no means rapid. The same obstacles which impeded its growth in the other countries of Europe, impeded it in England. Owing to the rudeness of the spinning ma- chinery, fine yarn could not be spun, and of course fine goods could not be woven. Fustians, dimities, and other strong fabrics were made; but calicoes and the more delicate cotton goods were not attempted. From “A Description of the towns of Manchester and Salford,” attached to a plan of the towns, taken about the year 1650, the following information is derived relative to trade :—“ The trade is not inferior to that of many cities in the kingdom, chiefly consisting in woollen frizes, fustians, sack-cloths, mingled stuffs, caps, inkles, tapes, points, Ike,, whereby not only the better sort of