Textiles Industrialisation of Ulster
- Created by: Zarahd2016
- Created on: 09-06-19 07:48
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- Linen
- mechanisation prevented the linen industry from being out produced and out-priced by mills of Lancashire, Dundee and Yorkshire
- 35 flax spinning mills set up by the 1830
- Kay's new technological advances promoted the advent of a more industrialised process that made the linen industry more competitive
- Linen trading triangle existed
- Railways helped stimulate the industry by opening up the interior of Ulster
- the continuous supply of linen created commercial confidence
- lowered production costs allowed the industry to survive the slump of 1839-42
- allowed smaller and more isolated areas a means to shift goods to Belfast, Britain and abroad
- Decline in cotton industry
- Stock market crash in 1825
- invention of wet spinning
- increased competition from British producers
- After 1825 tariffs were removed due to politicians calls for free trade
- Between 1770-1824 the cotton industry was protected by Irish parliament and its agreement with Britain to giv it an adv over competitors
- decline of wool industry
- stock market crash
- Britain's domestic wool industry was developing
- By 1850, only 4 out of 19 cotton mills in Ulster remained
- Irish exports of wool declined by roughly 30% in the 18th C
- Ulster supplied the majority of Ireland's domestic market of wool in early 19th C but by 1838 this had been reduced to 14% due to competition with other countries
- Belfast was 'linenopolis; on account of the River Lagan, employed more than 2000 people, grew at a fast rate in the 1820s
- a key market for Ulster linen was the USA. By 1850, 40% of Ulster's linen exports were being sent to America
- Benefitted farmers. offered them a chance to supplement their agricultural income (cottage industry)
- Mulholland's mill was destroyed by a fire in 1828, after he and his brother decided to focus on flax spinning
- Built Ulster's first steam-powered wet flax spinning mill
- His York Street Flax Company began operating in 1829 and by the end of the 19thC was the world's largest linen company, employing more than 5,000 workers
- Mullholland's business triggered the conversion of other cotton mills in Ulster and in 20 years linen production outstripped cotton production in the north of Ireland
- Linen offered a greater profit margin. Cotton was sold for 18- when spun whereas flax was cheaper to buy and sold for 4 shillings
- the demand for linen was high during the Napoleonic wars when the need was sail cloth was high, Irish cloth was also recognised as the best quality
- mechanisation prevented the linen industry from being out produced and out-priced by mills of Lancashire, Dundee and Yorkshire
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