Andrew Carnegie 2

Youth Born 25 November 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland. His father, William Carnegie was a master handloom weaver like his father and grandfather before him. He was a weaver who made fine damask linen with elaborate designs. {Aside – damask linen means a linen fabric with a woven design. Linen thread comes from the fiber of the Flax plant.} By 1835 the invention of the Cotton Gin in 1793 – which made cotton cheap and a readily available alternative to both linen …

…would be enough to pay for the furnace in two years!" An American style hard driven furnace had to be relined every 3 years as opposed to 12 years for a British style furnace. Even with the cheaper capital available in Britain, the increased output of an American style hard driven furnace produced capital savings if output exceeded the (low) figure of 45,000 tons a year. Carnegie’s men eventually got the Lucy to produce 100,000 tons a year!