Inventors/Inventions/Contributions Industrial Revolution

  • Abraham Darby

    Abraham Darby
    Figured out how to produce pig iron in a furnace which led to getting iron as a raw source material. He also obtained brass this way. He fueled the furnace using coke instead of charcoal.
  • John Kay

    John Kay
    An english inventor who created the flying shuttle, a device that was meant to help weave wider fabrics and therefore make weaving more efficient.
  • James Watt

    James Watt
    Scottish inventor who is often known as the "father of the industrial revolution" and made the Watt steam engine, taking inspiration from the Newcomen steam engine, which wasted too much steam. His machine helped keep steam within and helped better power machines.
  • James Hargreaves

    James Hargreaves
    An english weaver that created the spinning jenny, a multi-spinning machine said to be one of the first.
  • Samuel Crompton

    Samuel Crompton
    Inventor of the spinning mule, which allowed large scale manufacturing of good quality thread.
  • Henry Cort

    Henry Cort
    English ironware producer that refined iron from pig iron to use innovative production systems
  • Edward Cartwright

    Edward Cartwright
    English inventor of the first wool-combining machine and was the predecessor of the modern loom.
  • Nicolas LeBlanc

    Nicolas LeBlanc
    French chemist and surgeon that found out how to make soda ash from table salt which helps to sweeten soft drinks.
  • Eli Whitney

    Eli Whitney
    Inventor of the cotton gin and mass production of interchangeable parts. He created the cotton gin to help remove seeds from cotton more easily.
  • Robert Owen

    Robert Owen
    An early industrialist, Robert Owen was a textile worker during the industrial revolution that founded the utopian socialism movement.
  • Alessandro Volta

    Alessandro Volta
    An italian engineer who created the first electric battery. This invention helped lead to the technology we have today.
  • Elias Howe

    Elias Howe
    An american inventor who created the modern lockstitch sewing machine. It's said he was inspired to mechanize sewing after watching his wife sew by hand.