[JohnW]

I think the main difference between the present day and the time you describe above, is that, the men you mention were not only utilising the new technology of the day, in the main, they were the innovators and inventors of the technology. Not so now. That distinction has not only departed Accrington, it seems to have departed much of the British Isles. In my humble opinion, that is probably the main reason for the decline. I suppose that the men in question were very much 'self employed' and that was the incentive not to rest on laurels but to look forward and be proactive. I doubt any of their businesses declined whilst they were at the helm. That came later, with public ownership, poor management and lack of necessity, which we all know, is the true mother of invention.