In the past:
In the past at Manayunk there were many different industries and factories along the river because the solid and the planting materials were very rich. There we cotton plantations, coal mines and cotton factories to make clothes. The working force in the town was very strong because they were coming from places like Italy and Poland where they were used to this kind of work.
Before Manayunk was even Manayunk, there was the canal. William Penn had it built in 1818. This was a transportation unit for everyone in the town to use. They sent many things down the canal to others, for them to use. They sent everything from baked good, to crops, to fabrics, to cotton, even clothing. This was the main transportation unit for them to use because it was connected to all of the main streets of the town.
During the 1820's the focus was mainly on cotton textile manufacturing. There were about 10 factories to support this focus. A commander in 1828 describes Manayunk's factories as "four story stone building, two hundred feet long, containing 4,500 spindles and 120 power looms, all worked by about 200 persons." In the cotton business most of the time there was an assembly line type of action. You were constantly being moved and switched around to ensure that there was a constant flow of organization and work being upheld. Unfortunately during the commencement in the Civil War cotton became very hard to get hands on and many of the cotton factories were forced to close down. Surviving companies switched to wool instead because that was much easier to find during this time and to meet the needs of the Union Army. Even after the war, cotton was still very hard to get so these companies continued with wool and wool blends while the cotton companies continued to decrease. By the end of the century, Manayunk factories were producing standard cotton and wool fabrics, along with carpet yarns, silks, "shoddy" blends, hosiery, dress fabric, cashmere, jeans, and other articles.