Key developments included Slater's Mill, which marked the start of the textile industry, and the introduction of powered machines, leading to the Industrial Revolution.

A postcard rom 1910. Printed at bottom is 'Wigan Mill girls, slubbing frames'. Slubbing frames were machines used to straighten out cotton fibres prior to spinning.

Spinnning frames This could produce stronger threads for yarns. He set up the Cromford mill in 1771 and this was the first water-powered cotton spinning mill.

In America, he found the support of a Rhode Island merchant, Moses Brown, and constructed the first water-powered cotton spinning mill in that state. It opened on this day in 1790.

Also known as a water frame, it was the first textile machine designed to be powered by water. Arkwright set up the first water-powered cotton mill at Cromford, Derbyshire, in 1771.

Back in 1793, Slater Mill hired local artisans and laborers to create the first successful cotton-spinning factory in the U.S. and it’s still known today as the birthplace of the American ...

In this week's The Way We Were we look at the history of the cotton industry – which helped turn Manchester into the powerhouse of the Industrial Revolution.

Back in 1793, Slater Mill hired local artisans and laborers to create the first successful cotton-spinning factory in the U.S. and it’s still known today as the birthplace of the American ...