William Crompton

Background

William Crompton was born on September 10, 1806 at Preston, Lancashire, England, the son of Thomas and Mary (Dawson) Crompton. Preston was a textile mill town where the Crompton family had long been associated with the trade.

Education

William was taught handloom cottonweaving and later the trade of machinist.

Career

Before he was thirty years of age he was superintendent of a cotton-mill at Ramsbottom, in which position he had the opportunity to experiment with mill machinery and succeeded in increasing production there very materially.

In 1836 he came to Taunton, Massachusetts, entered the employ of Crocker & Richmond, and within a year had designed a loom to weave a pattern of goods such as the looms then used would not produce. This loom overcame two great disadvantages of its predecessors. In the early looms the movement of the warp harnesses was controlled by cams which limited the number of harnesses to not more than six and necessitated the changing of the cams to change the pattern. Crompton used an endless pattern-chain upon which rollers or pins could be variously placed to engage the harness levers as had the cams, but which allowed any number of harnesses to be used (usually twenty-four) and permitted an extremely easy change from one pattern to another.

The second novel feature was the double motion of the warp, which allowed more space for the shuttle and put correspondingly less strain on the warp threads.

Crocker & Richmond failed in 1837, and Crompton went back to England where he entered into business relations with John Rostran, in whose name he took out British patents on his loom. Returning to America in 1839, he settled his family at Taunton, and then traveled over New England trying to introduce his loom. Finally the Middlesex Mills, at Lowell, Mass. , asked him to adapt one of their looms for the production of figured woolens similar to the French goods then being introduced.

In 1840 he demonstrated that with his pattern-chain the desired figure could be woven. This was probably the first instance of fancy woolens being woven by power. Crompton spent two years in the Middlesex Mills, remodeling many of their looms and constructing several of his own invention. lie then licensed Phelps & Bickford at Worcester to build his looms on a royalty basis, which they did until the expiration of the patent.

Crompton then divided his time between the manufacture of cotton and woolen goods at Millbury, Massachusetts, and travel for the purpose of instructing operatives in the use of his loom, which had rapidly come into use throughout the United States and England.

In 1849 he became incapacitated for business and retired to Connecticut where he died years later at Windsor. His loom was greatly improved by his son, George Crompton.

Achievements

• While superintendent of a cotton mill in Ramsbottom he made many experiments on cotton looms. In 1840, he adapted his loom to the weaving of fancy woolens for Middlesex Mills in Lowell, Massachusetts.

Connections

On May 26, 1828 he married Sarah Low of Holcombe.

Father:

Thomas Crompton

Mother:

Mary (Dawson) Crompton

Spouse:

Sarah Low of Holcombe

Son:

George Crompton