What is wool used for? What other product was greatly more popular for the same purpose? Who produced this product and how?
Wool was used to make warm, durable cloth suitable for the Northern climes of Europe and the United States. Not much cotton is worn in Quebec, Minnesota or Norway in December. By the same token not much wool is worn in Spain, the Congo or Mississippi in August.
High quality clothing in both Europe and the United States was made of wool, not cotton. Even the Confederate Army wanted to use wool for the uniforms of it’s soldiers. This is because wool was much more durable and the uniform articles would last much longer than cotton. Since the Confederacy didn’t have access to large quantities of wool, they had to settle for a wool cotton blend called jean. The Confederates even imported wool uniforms for Britain and Ireland.
In warmer climates like Southern Europe, Africa, India, Southern United States and indoor comfort in colder climates, cotton is the cloth of choice. But it has limitations. It is not suitable for colder climates or where durability is a requirement. In reality, cotton and wool are not direct competitors in the textile trades. Both have their uses and markets. Cottons is the larger of the two markets and the South was the primary producer of cotton.