John Levers
or John Leavers
Inventor of the Levers (or Leavers) lace-making machine.
Levers was a hosiery frame-smith and setter-up when he moved from Sutton-in-Ashfield to Derby Road in Nottingham. There, starting in 1812, he embarked on the development and manufacture of lace and net machinery, improving on the machines of John Heathcote (John Heathcoat). He was helped by two brothers and a nephew. Financial help for building production machines came from the lace-making firm of John Stevenson and Skipwith. Levers did not patent his machines. In 1821 he emigrated to Rouen, where he set up his lace-making machines. He died in France.[1] However, see below.
To confuse matters, three members of the family engaged in the machinery development were called John Levers (senior, junior, and nephew). JL sr. died at New Radford, and JL jr. died in Rouen[2]
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ Biographical Dictionary of the History of Technology, edited by Lance Day, Ian McNeil, Routledge, 1996
- ↑ [1] List of inventions and inventors in the Report of the Commissioner appointed to inquire into the Condition of the Frame-work Knitters: THE SESSIONAL PAPERS OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS, IN THE SESSION 1845, Vol XXIII