Thomas Highs facts for kids
Thomas Highs (1718–1803) was an inventor from Leigh, Lancashire, during the Industrial Revolution. He made parts for looms and built machines for processing cotton in the 1780s. Highs is known for claiming he invented the spinning jenny (which James Hargreaves is usually credited with) and a machine for continuous spinning called the throstle. He also invented a machine for carding cotton.
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Life and Early Inventions
Thomas Highs was born in Leigh, Lancashire, in 1718. He lived most of his life there. People say he was a "reed-maker." A reed is like a comb on a weaving loom. It keeps the threads straight and helps the weaver make the cloth tight.
In 1747, he married Sarah Moss. About five years later, he became interested in machines for spinning cotton. Between 1763 and 1764, he worked with John Kay, a clockmaker, to build a spinning machine.
Later, between 1766 and 1767, Highs found a way to spin cotton using rollers. This was similar to an idea patented by Lewis Paul and John Wyatt. John Kay helped him build this new machine.
It is clear that Highs invented a "perpetual carding engine" in 1773. This machine helped prepare cotton fibers. He also invented an improved double spinning jenny.
Who Invented What?
A man named Richard Guest claimed that Thomas Highs was the real inventor of two important machines. These were Hargreaves' spinning jenny and Arkwright's rollers, which were key to the water frame. This idea was even discussed in court.
Richard Guest wrote a book in 1823 about cotton manufacturing. He later published another book, saying that Highs was indeed the inventor of both machines. However, another historian, Edward Baines, disagreed with Guest's claims in his own book, History of the Cotton Manufacture in Great Britain, published in 1835.
The Arkwright Patent Dispute
In 1775, Richard Arkwright patented several machines for making cotton. These machines covered everything from cleaning cotton to spinning it into thread. In 1781, Arkwright went to court to protect his patents. But his patents were actually cancelled.
Four years later, after his patents were temporarily restored, another court case happened in London in 1785. This case made a final decision. Arkwright had applied for at least five patents related to spinning. These patents were challenged in court for several reasons. People argued that the inventions were not new, or that Arkwright had not invented them himself.
Thomas Highs was a witness at the trial in February 1785. He said in his testimony that he had made fluted rollers. The court cases in 1781 and 1785 focused on whether the inventions were clearly described. But in June 1785, the main argument was whether the inventions were truly original.
The Allegation Against Arkwright
The spinning jenny had a problem: it could only make thread suitable for weft (the crosswise threads in fabric). This thread was too soft for warp (the lengthwise threads), which still had to be made from linen.
While Hargreaves worked on the spinning jenny, it is said that Highs built a machine using rollers. This machine was similar to what was later called the water frame. The spinning jenny stretched thread by holding it in a wooden clamp and pulling it. The water frame got better results by passing the cotton fibers through two sets of gripping rollers. The second set of rollers spun five times faster than the first. This stretched the thread to exactly five times its original length. Then, a bobbin and flyer twisted the thread. This machine made stronger thread that was good for warp.
It is claimed that Highs gave a wooden model of his rollers to the clockmaker Kay. He asked Kay to make a working metal version. Kay did this before moving back to his hometown, Warrington.
Richard Arkwright met Kay during his business travels. He gained Kay's trust and, it is said, convinced him to share the secrets of Highs's machines. Arkwright, who later became Sir Richard Arkwright, became very rich and famous in the cotton industry because of this invention. Highs, however, lived the rest of his life without much recognition.
Highs, Kay, Kay's wife, and the widow of James Hargreaves all testified in court. They claimed that Arkwright had taken their inventions. Arkwright's patents were cancelled. This court decision was later seen as meaning that since Arkwright was not the inventor, Highs must have been.
Highs's Later Life and Work
Thomas Highs moved around Lancashire, working on his inventions.
- Around 1767 or 1768, Highs lived in Leigh. He kept his roller-frame machine secret in a special room. He also built a spinning jenny with spindles in a circle.
- About 1769, he showed some spun thread from his new machine to the Board of Trade in Manchester. He hoped to find an investor, but he was not successful.
- In 1770 or 1771, he moved to Manchester. There, he built a "double-jenny" with 28 spindles on each side. His son, Thomas Highs Jr., showed this machine publicly in Manchester in 1772. Manufacturers gave Highs 200 guineas (a sum of money) as a reward for his cleverness.
- In 1772, he moved to Wilderspool farm. Here, he improved his carding-engine. This machine helped prepare cotton continuously for the spinning machines.
- From 1773 to 1776, he lived in Bolton-le-Moors. He became friends with Samuel Crompton, who invented the spinning mule. The spinning mule combined ideas from the spinning jenny and the water frame. Crompton said he invented it on his own. However, Highs, who knew a lot about both machines, lived in Bolton at the same time. They were also part of the same religious group.
- In 1776, Highs returned to Manchester. He planned to build a spinning factory in Yorkshire with a merchant named Mr. Smith. But Mr. Smith sadly drowned, and the plan fell through.
- In 1777, Highs went to Nottingham to build spinning machines. In 1778 and 1779, he made machines in Kidderminster for various manufacturers.
- In 1780, he went to Ireland to manage cotton spinning machines for Baron Hamilton.
- In 1785, he was called back to England to be a witness against Sir Richard Arkwright in the famous patent trial. Arkwright lost the trial, and Highs never returned to Ireland.
- Highs continued making machines in Manchester until about 1790. Then, he had a stroke that made him weak. William Drinkwater, a cotton spinner, helped him financially. Drinkwater gave him money every month and twice a year. When Thomas Highs died on December 13, 1803, at age 84, Drinkwater paid for his burial. Highs was buried in Manchester.
