Spinning Jenny

Spinning Jenny’s are significantly more efficient spinning wheels, allowing wool to be produced at a much lower price.

Each Jenny did the work of multiple spinners.

The Jenny (slang for Engine in British English) was unwelcome in Hargreaves’ village because it caused yarn prices to decline. Chased by angry tradesmen, he fled from the spinning community of Blackburn to Nottingham.

Hargreaves patented the Jenny July 12, 1770, but still struggled with knockoffs, losing a major court case. He profited not from the machine but, rather, by running a mill in Hockley.

He died in 1778 and his wife was paid £400 for use of the patent.

The Jenny is one of the seminal innovations of the Industrial Revolution and spurred the Luddites.