Jute in India

A series of photographs from our collections demonstrating the stages of jute manufacture in 20th century India.

Scroll through the groups of images and click on an image to enlarge it.

For nearly two hundred years Dundee's prosperity was dependent on the textile industry and, in particular, on the manufacturing of jute grown in India. Dundee was the largest jute manufacturer in the world and a vital market for Indian jute producers. By the early 20th century however Calcutta had overtaken Dundee as the dominant centre for the production of jute. Nevertheless, the two cities maintained close links and until the 1970s many of the overseers, managers and mechanics working in Bengal jute mills came from Dundee.