Kidderminster begins weaving flat, double-cloth 'Kidderminster' (ingrain) carpet in 1735

Cite this source

Research notes

The 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica says Kidderminster's woollen trade 'was however replaced by that of carpets, introduced in 1735', and that at first only 'Kidderminster' carpets were made until a Brussels loom was set up in 1749. The Revolutionary Players local-history site (West Midlands) credits John Pearsall with introducing carpets 'as we would recognise them' in 1735, says early pieces were closer to wall hangings, and that the product was called 'Ingrain', then 'Kidderminster', then 'Scotch' once the process moved to Scotland. Another local source says instead that two stuff weavers made the first one. The 1797 Encyclopaedia Britannica (via jimclifford.ca) reports over 250 carpet looms in the town by 1772. Why it matters: ingrain was the first carpet woven on a loom in volume in England: flat, pileless, reversible double cloth, the cheap end of the market that pile carpet (Brussels, Wilton) and much later tufted broadloom would compete against. Conflict: who made the first piece (Pearsall vs. 'two stuff weavers'). Sources: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1911_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica/Kidderminster · https://www.revolutionaryplayers.org.uk/the-origins-of-carpet-making-in-kidderminster/ · https://jimclifford.ca/early_encyclopedia_britannica/articles/1797/eb_3rd_1797_012331.html Research note (Oct 2026): from search results; pages not opened.