Our History

From small beginnings to an industrial revolution, our history dates back to 1757 and is one of the cotton industry’s most historic and complete archives

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1757-1829

The first recorded cotton dealing in Liverpool was a newspaper advertisement for an auction of 28 bags of Jamaican cotton in 1759.

Over the next seven decades a series of technological and industrial developments revolutionised cotton production.

Liverpool enjoyed a physical proximity to the world centre of the industry – the Lancashire cotton towns. It also had well established trading links with the new powerhouse of raw cotton – the USA. As imports soared to the million-bale mark, Liverpool overtook London as the country’s leading cotton importer.

3 June 1757

The first recorded transaction of cotton dealing in Liverpool in the press appears

The full advertisement in the “Liverpool Chronicle and Marine Gazetter” ran as follows: “To be sold by auction at the…

James Hargreaves invents the Spinning Jenny.

Even after John Kay patented his Flying Shuttle in 1733, cotton production could not keep up with the demand for…

Richard Arkwright patents the Water-Frame

Arkwright’s interest in the spinning and carding machinery, which turned raw cotton into thread, led to his Water-Frame. It produced…

Joshua Holt becomes the first Liverpool Cotton Broker

The first people who engaged in brokering in cotton in Liverpool could not, strictly speaking, be called cotton brokers, as…

Samuel Crompton invents the Spinning Mule

Spinning MuleSo-called because it was hybrid of hargreaves’ Spinning Jenny and Awkwright’s Water-Frame, the Mule combined the best parts of…

James Watt and Matthew Boulton perfect their steam engine for use in factories

These machines, although a little slow to take off in the cotton industry (Manchester did not get one until 1879,…

A Good year for the cotton industry

This was the year that Richard Arkwright’s patents came into the public domain, making it cheaper to build and modify…

The first monthly "Prices Current" sheet is issued by Ewart and Ruston

At this stage, the prices of cotton were presented alongside those for a variety of other goods imported into Liverpool…

Eli Whitney invents the Cotton Gin

This was a mechanical device that mechanised the process of removing seeds from the cotton crop, which previously had been…

Liverpool overtakes London as the leading British cotton importer

Liverpool had actually overtaken London in the period 1790-1792, but London regained its primacy in 1793 and held it in…

Imports of American cotton exceed those from the West Indies for the first time

From this point onwards, the short staple American Uplands cotton would dominate cotton imported into Britain. In 1810, 246,759 bales…

The first Weekly Circular of cotton prices is published by Ewart and Ruston

With the growing importance of the rapidly-expanding cotton market came an equally expanding need for facts relating to prices, supplies,…

Traders move from the top of Castle Street to Exchange Flags

“Monday the 7th March, of that year, was a day of much importance in the commercial annals of Liverpool, as…

Robert Gill proposes buying cotton from sample

By this time, many inland cotton buyers, faced with the prospect of long journeys to Liverpool to inspect the ever-increasing…

Egyptian long staple cotton is imported into Liverpool for the first time

This cotton was of a quality that had not been seen in any quantity before, being only slightly shorter in…

Our History

1757-1829

3 June 1757

The first recorded transaction of cotton dealing in Liverpool in the press appears

1764

James Hargreaves invents the Spinning Jenny.

1769

Richard Arkwright patents the Water-Frame

1770

Joshua Holt becomes the first Liverpool Cotton Broker

1779

Samuel Crompton invents the Spinning Mule

1783

James Watt and Matthew Boulton perfect their steam engine for use in factories

1785

A Good year for the cotton industry

1787

The first monthly "Prices Current" sheet is issued by Ewart and Ruston

1793

Eli Whitney invents the Cotton Gin

1795

Liverpool overtakes London as the leading British cotton importer

1802

Imports of American cotton exceed those from the West Indies for the first time

1805

The first Weekly Circular of cotton prices is published by Ewart and Ruston

7 March 1808

Traders move from the top of Castle Street to Exchange Flags

c.1810

Robert Gill proposes buying cotton from sample

1823

Egyptian long staple cotton is imported into Liverpool for the first time

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