Textiles

The 50,000 objects in the textile collections fall into two main categories: raw fibers, yarns, and fabrics, and machines, tools, and other textile technology. Shawls, coverlets, samplers, laces, linens, synthetics, and other fabrics are part of the first group, along with the 400 quilts in the National Quilt Collection. Some of the Museum's most popular artifacts, such as the Star-Spangled Banner and the gowns of the first ladies, have an obvious textile connection.

The machinery and tools include spinning wheels, sewing machines, thimbles, needlework tools, looms, and an invention that changed the course of American agriculture and society. A model of Eli Whitney's cotton gin, made by the inventor in the early 1800s, shows the workings of a machine that helped make cotton plantations profitable in the South and encouraged the spread of slavery.

A length of printed crepe plain weave fabric. Pattern "Colonial Stars", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co.George Washington Bicentennial Prints.
Description
A length of printed crepe plain weave fabric. Pattern "Colonial Stars", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co.George Washington Bicentennial Prints. The allover, tossed, non-directional design uses blue stars, singly and in groups of 2 and 3 against a ground of evenly spaced tiny blue dots on an off-white ground. The discoloration and oily residue apparent on this fabric sample suggests that either a) it was not either pure dye or pure silk, as are most of the other Mallinson fabrics; or b) it was stored in contact with another object from which it picked up the residue which discolored it. More research needs to be done to determine the origin of the damage.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06960
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06960.000
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric pattern "Virginia Floral", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial prints.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric pattern "Virginia Floral", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial prints. Colonial gardens inspired the design of flower garlands, dotted with candlesticks and lanterns.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06951
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06951.000
accession number
118355
A length of printed crepe. Pattern "Nellie Custis" one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co.
Description
A length of printed crepe. Pattern "Nellie Custis" one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial prints.Pattern inspired by an old silk brocade is made up of many different tiny flower motifs with plain 2 inch border along one selvage, outlined with a flower garland in a running vine effect. The discoloration and oily residue apparent in this textile sample suggests that either a) it was not either pure dye or pure silk, as most of the other Mallinson samples are, or b) it was stored for some time in contact with another object that damaged it. Additional research should be done to determine the source and cause of the discoloration and residue.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06955
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06955.000
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft, lustrous, plain weave fabric, pattern "Sampler". One of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial print series.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft, lustrous, plain weave fabric, pattern "Sampler". One of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial print series. According to company publicity provided at the time of the line's introduction, the faux "cross stitch" design depicts various dates of Washington's life: his coat of arms, the key to the Bastille, an hour glass, a boxwood hedge he planted, and filler motifs of trees and birds on a beige ground.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06953
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06953.000
In the 20th century, women’s hobbies included embroidery techniques such as needlepoint and crewel.This rectangular canvas work depicts a "Sea Beast." Thirty-seven kneeling sea creatures with fishlike tails are on the shore, with a three-spired pavilion with sea horse banners on
Description
In the 20th century, women’s hobbies included embroidery techniques such as needlepoint and crewel.
This rectangular canvas work depicts a "Sea Beast." Thirty-seven kneeling sea creatures with fishlike tails are on the shore, with a three-spired pavilion with sea horse banners on each spire. There is a sea beast's head and two more sections of his serpent-like body rising from the waters. At the top upper right are the initials EBR 1935. The ground is cotton canvas. The threads are tapestry wool in shades of brown from beige to chocolate and the stitches are half cross and tent.
According to a family member, “Sea Beast” is based upon a painting made by a friend of Eleanor’s who was a medium.
Eleanor Butler Alexander was born on December 26, 1888, in New York City to Henry and Grace Green Alexander. She married Theodore Roosevelt II on June 20, 1910. They had four children: Grace, Theodore III, Cornelius V. S., and Quentin. She died on May 29, 1960, in Oyster Bay, Long Island, New York.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1935
maker
Roosevelt, Eleanor Butler Alexander
ID Number
TE.T13347.01
accession number
252238
catalog number
T13347
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe--soft lustrous, plain weave fabric #7102 (same construction as T 6943) pattern #3968 "Dolly Madison," one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial celebratory prints.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe--soft lustrous, plain weave fabric #7102 (same construction as T 6943) pattern #3968 "Dolly Madison," one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial celebratory prints. The wheat design in black and white on a yellow ground, is an adaptation of the brocaded pattern of a dress worn by Dolly Madison during the administration of James Madison. At the time this print series was introduced in 1931, this dress and others used for inspiration in this line of silk prints were on exhibition at the National Museum (now NMAH.)
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H. R. Mallinson & Co. Inc.
ID Number
TE.T06945
catalog number
T6945
T (/) 6945
accession number
118355
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe--soft, lustrous, plain weave fabric #7102 (same construction as T-6943); pattern #3973 "Spinning Wheel," one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe--soft, lustrous, plain weave fabric #7102 (same construction as T-6943); pattern #3973 "Spinning Wheel," one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. 1932 George Washington Bicentennial prints, showing a tiny detached motif in a spaced, tossed layout; white on a black ground, representing a Saxony wheel with flax covered distaff.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H. R. Mallinson & Co. Inc.
ID Number
TE.T06950
catalog number
T6950
T (/) 6950
accession number
118355
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric "Thirteen stars", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial print series. An allover star pattern with two sizes of stars singly and in 13 star circles in white on a dark blue ground.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric "Thirteen stars", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial print series. An allover star pattern with two sizes of stars singly and in 13 star circles in white on a dark blue ground. According to company publicity at the time of its introduction, the design was adapted from a flag of the original 13 colonies. Probably a discharge-print.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06949
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06949.000
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric, pattern "Betsy Ross" one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial prints.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric, pattern "Betsy Ross" one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial prints. All over diagonal novelty stripe: arrangement of stars and stripes of varying widths and sizes in red, beige, and white.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06952
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06952.000
A sample length of William Skinner & Sons nylon parachute cloth from World War II.
Description
A sample length of William Skinner & Sons nylon parachute cloth from World War II. A smooth, close, semi-transparent plain weave nylon fabric.; Camouflage design in two tones of green (medium and dark) on a lighter green ground with irregular shaped blotch patterns simulating foliage and according to the original paperwork from the manufacturer, designed as protective coloring for army parachutes.
William Skinner emigrated from England to Massachusetts in 1843, finding work as silk dyer. He eventually opened his own silk manufacturing company, the Unquomonk Silk Co., making silk threads and yarns for weaving and sewing. In 1874, the mill was destroyed when the Mill River Dam gave way. Skinner moved his company a few miles away, to Holyoke, Massachusetts, and rebuilt the mill, expanding production to include woven fabrics (Skinner satins were nationally famous) and silk braids. He ran the company until his death in 1902, and the firm stayed in the family, and remained in operation in Holyoke, until 1961, when his heirs sold it to Indian head Mills, which immediately closed the Holyoke operation.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1945
ID Number
TE.T09146.000
accession number
170051
catalog number
T09146.000
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1934
ID Number
TE.T11798B
catalog number
T11798.00B
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric. Pattern "Liberty Bell". One of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial Print series.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric. Pattern "Liberty Bell". One of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial Print series. An allover non-directional tossed layout: design in dark blue and white, showing a collection of antiques of colonial days (tricorne, bonnet, lantern, candlestick, etc.) with the Liberty Bell as a prominent motif.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06957
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06957.000
William Skinner and Sons Parachute Flare Cloth silk plain weave fabric length; 1941.Sheer, originally stiff (now soft) fabric for making parachutes for flares. Plain weave, all-silk. Quality 9357, Lot. No. 19079. White colored. Thread count 130 x 108.
Description
William Skinner and Sons Parachute Flare Cloth silk plain weave fabric length; 1941.
Sheer, originally stiff (now soft) fabric for making parachutes for flares. Plain weave, all-silk. Quality 9357, Lot. No. 19079. White colored. Thread count 130 x 108. Woven in Holyoke, MA.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1941
ID Number
TE.T08576.000
accession number
161884
catalog number
T08576.000
In 1928, the E. I. DuPont de Nemours Co. hired Wallace Carothers Ph. to conduct pure research in any area of chemistry he chose. His interest was in the construction of long chain polymers, similar to those found in nature.
Description
In 1928, the E. I. DuPont de Nemours Co. hired Wallace Carothers Ph. to conduct pure research in any area of chemistry he chose. His interest was in the construction of long chain polymers, similar to those found in nature. There was no product in mind when he and his team began their work, they simply wanted to learn as much about large molecules as possible. The work done by Carothers and his team lead to the discovery of polyesters and polyamides. DuPont went with the polyamides, and nylon was born. It was the first fiber produced entirely in the laboratory, and was introduced to the public in the form of women's stockings at the 1939 World's Fair. Nylon stockings went on sale May 15, 1940, and were a smashing success. Prior to the production of nylon stockings, American women wore stockings made of silk or rayon. By 1942, nylon stockings were taking twenty percent of the stocking market. With U.S. entry into World War Two, nylon was declared a defense material and withdrawn from the civilian market. Nylon's most famous use during the war was as a replacement for silk in parachutes. However, it was also used in ropes, netting, tire cord, and dozens of other items. So many uses were found for nylon that some referred to it as the "fiber that won the war." When the war ended, nylon stockings were brought back and quickly replaced silk and rayon in the stocking market.
This is the first pair of experimental nylon stockings made by Union Hosiery Company for Du Pont in 1937. The leg of the stocking is nylon, the upper welt, toe, and heel are silk, and cotton is found in the seam. The nylon section of the stocking would not take the silk dye, and dyed to black instead of brown.
Date made
ca 1937
1937
maker
Union Hosiery Co.
ID Number
TE.T12049
accession number
227591
catalog number
T12049
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric. Pattern "Starry Stripes", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentenniel print series.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric. Pattern "Starry Stripes", one of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentenniel print series. Overall pattern of iny white stars on a blue ground in a lengthwise stripe layout.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06958
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06958.000
William Skinner and Sons "Escape Parachute Cloth," or "Canopy Cloth" white silk twill fabric length, 1941.Lightweight, soft silk fabric used in making soldiers' parachutes. Commercial names: Escape Parachute Cloth or Canopy Cloth. Manufacturer's notes: Twill weave, 2 x 1.
Description
William Skinner and Sons "Escape Parachute Cloth," or "Canopy Cloth" white silk twill fabric length, 1941.
Lightweight, soft silk fabric used in making soldiers' parachutes. Commercial names: Escape Parachute Cloth or Canopy Cloth. Manufacturer's notes: Twill weave, 2 x 1. Quality Exp 302A, Lot No. 47539. Color white. Thread count 288 x 84. Used in World War II. Woven in Holyoke, MA by William Skinner and Sons. Small rivet-like indentions on one side of the length, spanning all the way across every few inches.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1941
ID Number
TE.T08575.000
accession number
161884
catalog number
T08575.000
William Skinner and Sons black silk faille fabric length; 1932. Fabric known as faille or grosgrain. Soft, close, plain weave fabric, but with flat ribs produced by a coarse cotton filling yarn which is entirely covered by the very fine silk warp yarn. Used for women's shoes.
Description
William Skinner and Sons black silk faille fabric length; 1932. Fabric known as faille or grosgrain. Soft, close, plain weave fabric, but with flat ribs produced by a coarse cotton filling yarn which is entirely covered by the very fine silk warp yarn. Used for women's shoes. Yard-dyed black. Selvedge says "Skinner's" woven in black.
William Skinner emigrated from England to Massachusetts in 1843, finding work as silk dyer. He eventually opened his own silk manufacturing company, the Unquomonk Silk Co., making silk threads and yarns for weaving and sewing. In 1874, the mill was destroyed when the Mill River Dam gave way. Skinner moved his company a few miles away, to Holyoke, Massachusetts, and rebuilt the mill, expanding production to include woven fabrics (Skinner satins were nationally famous) and silk braids. He ran the company until his death in 1902, and the firm stayed in the family, and remained in operation in Holyoke, until 1961, when his heirs sold it to Indian head Mills, which immediately closed the Holyoke operation.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1932
ID Number
TE.T06934.000
accession number
117978
catalog number
T06934.000
Lizzie Reagan wove this overshot coverlet in Tennessee in about 1930. It is made of cotton and wool, and woven in a design that is sometimes known as "Lee's Surrender." Lizzie Reagan was known as Aunt Lizzie, and was an expert on natural dyes.
Description
Lizzie Reagan wove this overshot coverlet in Tennessee in about 1930. It is made of cotton and wool, and woven in a design that is sometimes known as "Lee's Surrender." Lizzie Reagan was known as Aunt Lizzie, and was an expert on natural dyes. She was active in the movement to reintroduce "old" methods such as hand spinning and weaving at the Phi Beta Phi Settlement School in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Such schools were started in the 1880s by benevolent societies in an attempt to encourage and preserve the local material culture, and provide the local artists with income.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1930
maker
Reagan, Lizzie
ID Number
1996.0120.01
catalog number
1996.0120.01
accession number
1996.0120
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1900-1930
ID Number
TE.T12118
catalog number
T12118.000
accession number
230142
Length of Mallinson's Morocco series dress silk, printed silk crepe:"Kutubia". Smooth lustrous plain weave weighted silk fabric made with crepe weft yarn as in flat crepe. Company #s - fabric quality #450; pattern #3546; color #13.
Description
Length of Mallinson's Morocco series dress silk, printed silk crepe:"Kutubia". Smooth lustrous plain weave weighted silk fabric made with crepe weft yarn as in flat crepe. Company #s - fabric quality #450; pattern #3546; color #13. Printed design in pink, brown, and white of an architectural motif and palm tree pattern named for Kutubia Tower, of a mosque in Marrakech, built in 1063 A.D.. One of H.R. Mallinson's 1930 "Morocco" print series, inspired by the film starring Gary Cooper and Marlene Dietrich, which was nomiated for 4 Academy Awards in 1931.
Once the Great Depression took hold in 1930, textile companies attempted to remain profitable by cutting costs, including moving from "Pure Dye" to "Weighted" silks: weighting meant adding a chemical to the dye bath that was absorbed by the silk and made it fel somewhat heavier and of a better quality.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1931
maker
H. R. Mallinson & Co. Inc.
ID Number
TE.T06749
accession number
112893
catalog number
T06749.000
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric. Pattern "Candlelight". One of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial print series.
Description
A length of printed pure dye silk crepe. Soft lustrous plain weave fabric. Pattern "Candlelight". One of the H.R. Mallinson & Co. George Washington Bicentennial print series. Scattered motifs of candlestick with lighted taper, liberty bell, star, flower blossoms, and bellows against of ground with an overall pattern of tiny dots
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1932
maker
H R Mallinson and Company, Incorporated
ID Number
TE.T06954
accession number
118355
catalog number
T06954.000
A mourning picture embroidered by Susan Winn, about 1816, in Lititz, PA, and dedicated to her sister, Caroline, who died in 1806 as an infant. The circular embroidered picture is surrounded by a band of couched chenille decorated with gold spangles.
Description
A mourning picture embroidered by Susan Winn, about 1816, in Lititz, PA, and dedicated to her sister, Caroline, who died in 1806 as an infant. The circular embroidered picture is surrounded by a band of couched chenille decorated with gold spangles. It shows a woman, two girls, and a boy gathered around a cloth-draped urn on which is printed "rests in Peace." The woman and girls wear necklaces with pendants or plaques; the one worn by the girl on the right is lettered "SW." The boy holds a book on which is printed "Ble--ed are the Dead that die in the L---." Printed in blue ink on the front of the plinth is "Sacred to the Memory / of my dear Sister / CAROLINE WINN. / Sweet be Thy sepulchral rest / Sister dear! supremely blest! / May the ties which us unite / Be renew'd in realms of light! / Erected by Susan Winn." In a gilded wood frame, it measures 25" x 25", and its black mat is reverse-painted on the glass. The ground is twill-weave ivory silk, and the stitches are satin, long and short, stem, and couching.
Susan was born October 18, 1801, to John and Susanna Winn in Baltimore, Maryland. Her father was a flour merchant and entered Susan and Elizabeth in the Moravian boarding school, Linden Hall Seminary, in Lititz, Pennsylvania in 1815. Susan married John Reynolds on December 23, 1824.
Mourning designs appear in many 19th-century decorative arts, including needlework. Embroidered landscapes, usually worked by schoolgirls, often show relatives or friends grieving before a monument dedicated to a lost loved one. For more about this embroidery and other schoolgirl needlework, see Girlhood Embroidery, American Samplers & Pictorial Needlework by Betty Ring (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1993) and The "Ornamental Branches," Needlework and Arts from the Lititz Moravian Girls' School Between 1800 and 1865 by Patricia T. Herr (Lancaster, PA: The Heritage Center Museum of Lancaster County, 1996).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1816
associated dates
1938
maker
Winn, Susan
ID Number
TE.T08266
catalog number
T08266
accession number
148588
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1934
ID Number
TE.T11798A
catalog number
T11798.00A
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1930-1935
ID Number
TE.T13545
catalog number
T13545.000
accession number
258419

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.