Jedediah Strutt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jedediah Strutt
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Portrait, oil on canvas, of Jedediah Strutt (1726–1797) by Joseph Wright of Derby (1734–1797)
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| Born | 1726 South Normanton, Alfreton, Derbyshire, England
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| Died | 7 May 1797 |
| Nationality | English |
| Occupation | Hosier and cotton spinner |
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| Children | William, George, Joseph, Elizabeth and Martha |
Jedediah Strutt (born 1726, died 1797) was a clever English inventor and businessman. He was known for making ribbed stockings and for his important role in the early days of cotton spinning during the Industrial Revolution.
Strutt and his brother-in-law, William Woollatt, created a special part for a stocking frame. This new part allowed them to make ribbed stockings, which were much more comfortable and popular. Their invention was called the Derby Rib machine.
Contents
Jedediah's Early Life
Jedediah Strutt was born in 1726 in a farming family. His home was in South Normanton, a village near Alfreton in Derbyshire, England.
When he was about 14, in 1740, he started learning to be a wheelwright in Findern. A wheelwright is someone who makes and repairs wheels. In 1754, he got some animals from an uncle. The next year, in 1755, he married Elizabeth Woollatt in Derbyshire.
He moved to Blackwell, where he had inherited a farm. Besides farming, he also started a business. He would transport coal from Denby to nearby towns like Belper and Derby.
The Amazing Derby Rib Machine
Jedediah's brother-in-law, William Woollatt, knew a man named Mr. Roper. Mr. Roper had an idea for a new part that could be added to a stocking frame. This part would allow the machine to knit stockings with ribs, making them stretchy and comfortable.
Mr. Roper had made a few examples, but he didn't have enough money or interest to develop his idea further. William Woollatt talked to Jedediah Strutt about it. Jedediah saw the potential! He sold one of his horses and paid Mr. Roper £5 for his invention.
Jedediah and William worked together to improve the device. They turned it into a useful machine. In 1759, they got a patent for their invention. This meant no one else could copy their machine without their permission.
Their machine became famous as the Derby Rib machine. The ribbed stockings it made quickly became very popular. People loved them because they were more comfortable than wool and cheaper than silk.
Building Cotton Mills
Working with Richard Arkwright
Cotton was in high demand, but there wasn't enough of it. Jedediah Strutt and another spinner named Samuel Need met Richard Arkwright around 1768. Arkwright had set up a spinning machine in Nottingham. However, he was using horses to power his mill, which wasn't very efficient.
In Derby, a man named John Lombe had already built a successful silk spinning mill. He used water power, which was much better. Strutt and Need decided to join Arkwright. They helped him build a large cotton mill in Cromford.
This new mill used what became known as Arkwright's water frame. It was the first of its kind in the world to use water power for spinning cotton. This important step marked the true beginning of the Industrial Revolution.
Strutt's Own Mills
Jedediah Strutt decided to build his own mills. In 1777, he bought land for his first mill in Belper. At that time, Belper was a small village where people made stockings and nails. In 1781, he bought an old ironworks at Makeney near Milford Bridge.
The Belper mill opened in 1778, and the Milford mill opened in 1782. For both locations, Jedediah built long rows of good quality houses for his workers. Today, both Belper and Milford are part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site. This means they are recognized as very important historical places.
Over time, there would be eight Strutt mills in Belper. The town grew a lot because of these mills. By the mid-1800s, Belper had a population of 10,000 people. It became the second-largest town in the county.
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Jedediah's Family and Legacy
Jedediah Strutt was the second son of William Strutt and Martha Statham. In 1755, he married Elizabeth Woollatt. They had five children together. Elizabeth sadly passed away in London in 1774. In 1781, Jedediah married again to Ann Cantrell, but they did not have any children.
Jedediah and Elizabeth's children were:
- William (1756–1830): He was also an inventor. He created the Belper stove. His son, Edward Strutt, became a famous politician.
- Elizabeth (1758–1836)
- Martha (1760–1793)
- George Benson (1761–1841)
- Joseph (1765–1844): He was known for his kindness and for giving money to good causes.
Jedediah Strutt died in Derby in 1797. He is buried in the Unitarian Chapel in Field Row, Belper. He had built this chapel himself in 1788 or 1789. His last home, Friar Gate House in Derby, has a special blue plaque on it. This house was designed by his son, William Strutt.
Jedediah Strutt was a very important person in the Industrial Revolution. His inventions and his cotton mills helped change how things were made and how people lived.
