All About the Industry

This section explores how and why the blanket industry came to be so important in Witney, and what its main products were.

Click on a link to find out more:
A Witney blanket timeline - putting the blanket trade in its historical context.

A brief history of the wool trade in the Witney area - a whistle-stop tour through the history of Witney blankets.

What is a Witney blanket? - what makes a 'Witney blanket', and how its meaning has changed over the years.

Why Witney? - the reasons why Witney became so famous for its blankets.

Witney and the Industrial Revolution - how the Industrial Revolution affected the blanket industry and its workers.

What kinds of blankets were made in Witney? - a description of the different types of Witney blanket that were made.

Not just blankets! - find out about the many different products besides blankets that Witney makers turned their hands to over the years.

Why are blankets no longer made in Witney? - the reasons behind the eventual decline of the industry.