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Inventive Activity in the British Textile Industry, 1700–1800

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  • Griffiths, Trevor
  • Hunt, Philip A.
  • O'Brien, Patrick K.

Abstract

An analysis of innovations in the eighteenth-century British textile industry is the basis for an evaluation of aggregate studies of invention during the Industrial Revolution, derived from patent evidence alone. Disaggregation of the data challenges recent generalizations concerning the pace and pattern of technical change over the period. Discontinuities in the nature of invention, promoting an acceleration in total factor productivity growth, are traced to the 1790s. Prior to that date, industrial development conformed to a pattern of Smithian growth, as manufacturers diversified their output in response to an expanding domestic market for consumer goods.

Suggested Citation

  • Griffiths, Trevor & Hunt, Philip A. & O'Brien, Patrick K., 1992. "Inventive Activity in the British Textile Industry, 1700–1800," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 52(4), pages 881-906, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:jechis:v:52:y:1992:i:04:p:881-906_01
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Klaus Desmet & Stephen Parente, 2012. "The evolution of markets and the revolution of industry: a unified theory of growth," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 205-234, September.
    2. Epstein, Stephan R., 1995. "Craft guilds, apprenticeship and technological change in pre-modern Europe," Economic History Working Papers 22419, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    3. Indrajit Ray, 2009. "Identifying the woes of the cotton textile industry in Bengal: tales of the nineteenth century," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 62(4), pages 857-892, November.
    4. Epstein, Stephan R., 2005. "Transferring technical knowledge and innovating in Europe, c.1200-c.1800," Economic History Working Papers 22547, London School of Economics and Political Science, Department of Economic History.
    5. Gavin Wright, 2020. "Slavery and Anglo‐American capitalism revisited," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(2), pages 353-383, May.
    6. Amujala, Someswar & Vossmeyer, Angela & Das, Sanjiv R., 2023. "Digitization and data frames for card index records," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    7. Alcino Azevedo & Dean Paxson, 2018. "Rivalry and uncertainty in complementary investments with dynamic market sharing," Annals of Operations Research, Springer, vol. 271(2), pages 319-355, December.
    8. Schwerin, Joachim & Werker, Claudia, 2003. "Learning innovation policy based on historical experience," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 14(4), pages 385-404, December.
    9. B. Zorina Khan, 2017. "Prestige and Profit: The Royal Society of Arts and Incentives for Innovation, 1750-1850," NBER Working Papers 23042, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Stephen Broadberry & Bishnupriya Gupta, 2009. "Lancashire, India, and shifting competitive advantage in cotton textiles, 1700–1850: the neglected role of factor prices1," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 62(2), pages 279-305, May.
    11. Trevor Griffiths & Philip Hunt & Patrick O’Brien, 2008. "Scottish, Irish, and imperial connections: Parliament, the three kingdoms, and the mechanization of cotton spinning in eighteenth‐century Britain1," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 61(3), pages 625-650, August.
    12. Jane Humphries, 2013. "The lure of aggregates and the pitfalls of the patriarchal perspective: a critique of the high wage economy interpretation of the British industrial revolution," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 66(3), pages 693-714, August.
    13. Feldman, Naomi E. & van der Beek, Karine, 2016. "Skill choice and skill complementarity in eighteenth century England," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 94-113.

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