The Derby Rib
Strutt's brother-in-law, William Woolat, employed one Mr. Roper of Locko who had produced an idea for an attachment to the stocking frame to knit ribbed stockings. He had made one or two specimens which he showed to his friends, though he lacked the interest (and the capital) to develop his idea. Woolatt conferred with Strutt, who sold a horse and paid Roper £5 for his invention. Strutt and Woolatt turned the device into a viable machine and took out a patent in 1759.
Their machine became known as the Derby Rib machine, and the stockings it produced quickly became popular. Cotton was cheaper than silk and more comfortable than wool but demand was far exceeding supply.
Read more about this topic: Jedediah Strutt
Famous quotes containing the word rib:
“Man created woman—out of what? Out of a rib of his god—of his “ideal.””
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)