Samuel Slater was born in Derbyshire, England on June 9, 1768. He went to work at an early age as an apprentice for the owner of a cotton mill. He became one of the superintendents and was very familiar with machinery. In 1789, Slater emigrated to the United States. He wanted to start working in textiles and make good money from it. British law forbade textile workers to share technological information or to leave the country. Slater set foot in New York in late 1789, having memorized the details of Britain's innovative machines. With the support of a Quaker merchant, Moses Brown, Slater built America's first water-powered cotton spinning mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. In partnership with the Providence firm of Almy and Brown, purchased
