Barnängens manufaktur (literary: "Children's Meadow's Manufacture"), was a textile factory in the Barnängen ("Children's Meadow") area in

Södermalm Södermalm, often shortened to just Söder, is a district and island in central Stockholm. Overview The district covers the large island of the same name (formerly called ''Åsön''). Although Södermalm usually is considered an island, wat ...

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

in Sweden, active from 1691 until 1826. Alongside its main rival '' Pauliska manufakturerna'' (The 'Paulinian Manufactures', active in 1673-1776), it was the biggest factory in Stockholm during the 18th-century, and during the 1780s, it employed more people than any other business in the city, the majority of whom were women. The factory has been fictionalized in the novel ''Vävarnas barn'' (Children of the Weavers) by

Per Anders Fogelström Per Anders Fogelström (22 August 1917, Stockholm – 20 June 1998 Stockholm) was a Swedish writer, and one of the leading figures in modern Swedish literature. He spent his whole life in Stockholm, and the most famous of the more than 40 books he ...

from 1981.

History

Barnängens manufaktur was founded by Jacob Gavelius, who established a

textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...

at the Barnängen area in 1691. The factory consists of several buildings: the

from 1691, the textilier building from 1758, the

Corps de logis In architecture, a ''corps de logis'' () is the principal block of a large, (usually Classical architecture, classical), mansion or palace. It contains the principal rooms, state apartments and an entry.Curl, James Stevens (2006). ''Oxford Dict ...

from 1767, and the factory- and storage buildings from 1782. The

spinning Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

factory used

Cannabis sativa ''Cannabis sativa'' is an annual Herbaceous plant, herbaceous flowering plant indigenous to East Asia, Eastern Asia, but now of cosmopolitan distribution due to widespread cultivation. It has been cultivated throughout recorded history, used as ...

and

Flax Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. Textiles made from flax are known in ...

to make yarn and weave textile fabrics, and one of its most common products were canvas for

sail A sail is a tensile structure—which is made from fabric or other membrane materials—that uses wind power to propel sailing craft, including sailing ships, sailboats, windsurfers, ice boats, and even sail-powered land vehicles. Sails may ...

18th-century

During the 18th-century, ''Barnängens manufaktur'' was the biggest factory in the capital of Stockholm alongside its main rival '' Pauliska manufakturerna'' (The 'Paulininian Manufactures', active in 1673-1776). It employed more people than any other business in the capital. The majority of employees were female: 416 of its 529 employees in 1745 were women, and in the 1780s, it was the biggest industry in Stockholm. The workers did not always work in the factory itself, but often arranged

Workshop Beginning with the Industrial Revolution era, a workshop may be a room, rooms or building which provides both the area and tools (or machinery) that may be required for the manufacture or repair of manufactured goods. Workshops were the only ...

s in their homes and elsewhere in the city: this was also the case with the main competitor ''Pauliska manufakturerna'', but in much higher degree, as the ''Pauliska manufakturerna'', in contrast to ''Barnängens manufaktur'', in fact had not factory at all. A normal workshop under the factory roughly consisted of one chief

Journeyman A journeyman, journeywoman, or journeyperson is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that fie ...

and four other Journeymen; three apprentices, 21 female workers and one chief spinning mistress. The workers were not bound to the factory and known for their freedom to change between the factory depending on who paid the highest price for their work. In 1788, the factory was on the height of hits success with 740 employees, and given large orders during the

Russo-Swedish War (1788–90) Wars between Russia and Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> ...

. However, in parallel, a great amount of competition aroused due to the establishment of textile factories all over the country, many of whom used a new mechanized technique rather than the old handicrafts method used by Barnängens manufaktur. When the bills for the orders to the royal army during the war was never paid, and the storage burned in 1792, the owner of the factory when bankrupt, which signified the end of the success of the factory.

Later history

The factory remained active, though in much smaller scale. In 1812, there were only nine employees.Värdefulla industrimiljöer, Stockholms stadsmuseum, 1984
/ref> In 1826, Barnängens manufaktur was finally closed. The former factory buildings housed the Hill School of correction from 1826 to 1848. In 1868, a new factory was founded in the same area, which was given a similar name: '' Barnängens Tekniska Fabrik'' (Barngängen Technical Factory, 1868-1992), which became known for its

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References

External links

* Du Rietz, Anita, Kvinnors entreprenörskap: under 400 år, 1. uppl., Dialogos, Stockholm, 2013
Värdefulla industrimiljöer, Stockholms stadsmuseum, 1984
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barnangens manufaktur Companies established in 1691 Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1826 17th century in Stockholm 18th century in Stockholm 19th century in Stockholm 18th century in Sweden 1691 establishments in Sweden 1826 in Sweden Defunct manufacturing companies of Sweden Industrial buildings completed in 1691 Industrial Revolution Spinning Cotton mills 1826 disestablishments in Sweden