Portrait of Richard Arkwright junior with his Wife Mary and Daughter Anne, Joseph Wright of Derby, 1790

Son of sir richard arkwright of cromford, derbyshire, richard arkwright junior (1755 - 1843) was the financier (creditor) of samuel oldknow of marple and mellor mill and a personal friend. Sir richard (the father) had earlier patented the water frame, a roller-spinning machine powered by water, that turned textile spinning into a factory industry and in so doing he founded the factory system of manufacture. Richard arkwright junior followed in his illustrious father’s footsteps and he developed the factory system even further. He was an outstanding organiser of labour and machinery processing, ambitious, forceful and persevering. Object Type: painting. Date: 1790. Dimensions: height: 244 cm (96 in); width: 158.5 cm (62.4 in). Medium: oil on canvas. Collection: Derby Museum and Art Gallery. Richard Arkwright Junior