The spinning soured in the first decades of the 19th century then turned into real industries. Some of them grew steadily to become among the main cotton mills in Lombardy. Legnano was ideal for opening up textile industries thanks to the presence of important communication routes and that of the Olona river, which provided the energy necessary to move the hydraulic wheels before the installation of steam engines. By the second half of the 19th century, the timber companies achieved a wider production, thanks in part to the technological improvement that led some industries to have an importance that transcended national borders.