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.

William T. Smith, of West Zanesville, Ohio, received Patent 99,743 in 1870 for an improvement on a sewing machine for stitching parallel seams. In the 19th century this miniature model was exhibited in the Patent Office's Museum of Models.
Description
William T. Smith, of West Zanesville, Ohio, received Patent 99,743 in 1870 for an improvement on a sewing machine for stitching parallel seams. In the 19th century this miniature model was exhibited in the Patent Office's Museum of Models. The model maker beautifully decorated this model far beyond the Patent Office requirements. It is complete with a table mount, and the name of the Patent holder is included in the gilt and multicolor decoration.
date made
1870
ID Number
TE.T6355
accession number
89797
patent number
99743
catalog number
T6355
For Bigelow’s invention of a “Loom for Weaving Piled Fabrics,” he received one of his many patents, which included patents for his celebrated looms for weaving Brussels, or looped, carpets.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
For Bigelow’s invention of a “Loom for Weaving Piled Fabrics,” he received one of his many patents, which included patents for his celebrated looms for weaving Brussels, or looped, carpets.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1851
patent date
1851-01-14
inventor
Bigelow, Erastus Brigham
ID Number
TE.T11411.014
accession number
89797
catalog number
T11411.014
patent number
7,898
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 2,466, issued February 21, 1842John James Greenough of Washington, D.C.In 1842, John Greenough received the first American patent for a sewing machine. Greenough’s patent model used a needle with two points and an eye in the middle.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 2,466, issued February 21, 1842
John James Greenough of Washington, D.C.
In 1842, John Greenough received the first American patent for a sewing machine. Greenough’s patent model used a needle with two points and an eye in the middle. To make a stitch, the needle would completely pass through the material by means of a pair of pinchers on either side of the seam. The pinchers traveled on a rack and opened and closed automatically. The needle was threaded with a length of thread, and required constant rethreading.
This type of sewing was classified as a short-thread machine. The machine was designed for sewing leather, and an awl preceded the needle to pierce a hole. The leather was held between clamps on a rack that could be moved, to produce a back stitch, or forward to make a shoemaker’s stitch. The material was fed automatically at a selected rate, according to the length of stitch desired. A weight drew out the thread, and a stop-motion shut down the machinery when a thread broke or became too short. Feed was continuous for the length of the rack-bar, and then it had to be set back. The turn of a crank set all motions to work. Greenough did not commercially manufacture his invention and his patent model remains as the only evidence.
He held several profitable patents for shoe-pegging machinery. He had many interests and his other patents included ones for plate glass; lampshades; looms; firearms; meters; propellers; gearing; hinges; power-transmitters; car steps; and a paper bag-making machine.
Greenough worked at the Patent Office from 1837 to 1841, supervising draftsmen who were restoring the patent drawings lost in the disastrous 1836 fire. Later he became an attorney working mostly on patent cases, and established a patent agency in New York City. In 1853, he was one of the founders of the American Polytechnic Journal, which published engravings of recent patents.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1842-02-21
patent date
1842-02-21
inventor
Greenough, John J.
ID Number
TE.T06048
catalog number
T06048.000
patent number
002466
accession number
48865
Power Loom Patent ModelPatent No. 595, issued February 6, 1838Elijah Fairman of Stafford, ConnecticutFairman’s improvements, consisting of an additional cam and a set of treadles, were applied to power looms in common use.
Description
Power Loom Patent Model
Patent No. 595, issued February 6, 1838
Elijah Fairman of Stafford, Connecticut
Fairman’s improvements, consisting of an additional cam and a set of treadles, were applied to power looms in common use. His improvements allowed the harnesses to operate more smoothly and the warp to open, enabling the shuttle to pass more easily. The end result was that the loom was better suited to weaving either light or heavy fabrics. Six pages and three illustrations in Clinton Gilroy’s 1844 book, The Art of Weaving, are spent in describing Fairman’s patent. Gilroy commented that Fairman’s loom would probably work fine for simple weaves, but for fancy patterned work, requiring 10 to 100 heddle frames, it would be totally impractical.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1838-02-06
patent date
1838-02-06
inventor
Fairman, Elijah
ID Number
TE.T11411.095
accession number
89797
catalog number
T11411.095
patent number
595
Reeling, Spinning, and Twisting Silk Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 1,367, issued October 12, 1839Jacob Pratt of Sherborn, MassachusettsPratt is an example of an inventor who thought he had a more complicated original invention than he actually had.
Description
Reeling, Spinning, and Twisting Silk Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 1,367, issued October 12, 1839
Jacob Pratt of Sherborn, Massachusetts
Pratt is an example of an inventor who thought he had a more complicated original invention than he actually had. In his patent application file, his specification makes four claims. Out of those four, only one was approved by Charles M. Keller, the patent examiner, and that claim was for using a trough of zinc. The trough held spools of silk fibers prior to spinning and was filled with warm water, which kept the fibers from sticking together.
The Journal of the Franklin Institute, 1840, commented: “Its construction is, in general, similar to such as is well known, and is not claimed as new . . . No particular reason is given for making the troughs of zinc, and we suppose that copper would do equally well; but from the special mention of this metal we were led to look for some ground of preference to it.”
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1839-10-12
patent date
1839-10-12
inventor
Pratt, Jacob
ID Number
TE.T11426.020
accession number
89797
catalog number
T11426.020
patent number
001367
Sewing Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 9,679 issued April 19, 1853William Wickersham of Lowell, MassachusettsWickersham exhibited his boot and leather sewing machine at the “New York Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations” in 1853.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 9,679 issued April 19, 1853
William Wickersham of Lowell, Massachusetts
Wickersham exhibited his boot and leather sewing machine at the “New York Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations” in 1853. His address in the catalogue for the exhibition was listed as 20 Bulfinch Street, Boston.
In 1853 and 1854, Butterfield & Stevens Mfg. Co., of Boston.
Massachusetts, manufactured sewing machines based on his patent of April 19, 1853. In his patent specification, Wickersham wrote, “My machine for sewing cloth, leather, or other material is calculated to sew either a chain stitch (the formation of which is well understood) or a stitch . . . formed of two threads, and so that the loops of one . . . shall alternately pass through or be interlocked with those of the other . . . .” Although he mentions sewing cloth, it was for sewing leather for boots and shoes that his sewing machine became important. Wickersham’s patents introduced the method that allowed for the use of sewing leather with waxed thread. The development of mechanisms that would allow for sewing with wax thread was crucial to the industrialization of the shoe making industry.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1853-04-19
patent date
1853-04-19
inventor
Wickersham, William
ID Number
TE.T06117
catalog number
T06117.000
patent number
009679
accession number
89797
Sewing Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 9,338, issued October 19, 1852Otis Avery of Honesdale, PennsylvaniaOtis Avery was born in Bridgewater, New York, on August 19, 1808. He learned the watchmaker’s trade from his father John, a silversmith and watchmaker.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 9,338, issued October 19, 1852
Otis Avery of Honesdale, Pennsylvania
Otis Avery was born in Bridgewater, New York, on August 19, 1808. He learned the watchmaker’s trade from his father John, a silversmith and watchmaker. Otis opened a watch repair shop in Bethany, Pennsylvania, in 1827.
Later, he studied dentistry under a Dr. Ambler in New Berlin, New York, and received a dental certificate of qualification in 1833. In 1850, he settled in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, where he practiced dentistry until his death in 1904.
Avery was mechanically talented, making many of his own dental tools. He designed a self-cleaning cuspidor and devised improvements to a typesetting machine. On October 19, 1852, he received Patent No. 9,338 for improvements on a sewing machine. The chain stitch he used was enlarged on his patent drawing and he described it in the specification as “two threads having a double lock with each other, and in practice almost every alternate stitch may be cut or broken, and yet the material will not . . . ‘rip out.’” A common problem with the chain stitch was that it could easily be unraveled. His patent claims were for the working combination of needle-bars, spring-holders, and adjustable guides, which regulated the length of the stitch together with a weight for moving the cloth forward.
The catalogue for the 1853 New York Exhibition noted that three sewing machines were exhibited by the Avery Sewing Machine Co. of New York City. Each machine was adapted for sewing different materials, such as wool, muslin, linen, and leathers. He continued to improve his machine and received Patent No. 10,880, issued May 9, 1854, and Patent No. 22,007, issued November 9, 1856.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1852-10-19
patent date
1852-10-19
inventor
Avery, Otis
ID Number
TE.T06114
catalog number
T06114.000
patent number
009338
accession number
89797
Spinning, Doubling, and Twisting Silk Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 977, issued on October 10, 1838Harrison Holland of Northampton, MassachusettsThe central part of Holland’s patent concerned the stop motion mechanism on a silk thread making machine.
Description
Spinning, Doubling, and Twisting Silk Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 977, issued on October 10, 1838
Harrison Holland of Northampton, Massachusetts
The central part of Holland’s patent concerned the stop motion mechanism on a silk thread making machine. If a thread broke, a small rod, connected to each of the threads by bent wires, would drop. A lever, to which the rod was attached, would come in contact with the drum and then stop the machine by throwing it out of gear. Also included in the patent was a method to change the twist of the silk thread by using a short cylinder.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1838-10-10
patent date
1838-10-10
inventor
Holland, Harrison
ID Number
TE.T11407.027
accession number
89797
patent number
977
catalog number
T11407.027
Sewing Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 9,139, issued July 20, 1852Charles Miller of St. Louis, MissouriAt the time of his patent, Charles Miller lived in St. Louis, Missouri, an uncommon choice of residence for a sewing machine inventor.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 9,139, issued July 20, 1852
Charles Miller of St. Louis, Missouri
At the time of his patent, Charles Miller lived in St. Louis, Missouri, an uncommon choice of residence for a sewing machine inventor. Most of the inventors, and subsequent manufacturers, were located in the northeastern United States, particularly New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.
In his patent specification, Miller states: “This invention relates to that description of sewing-machine which forms the stitch by the interlacing of two threads, one of which is passed through the cloth in the form of a loop, and the other carried by a shuttle through the said loop.” His claim continues by stating: “It consists, first, in an improved stop-motion, or certain means of preventing the feed or movement of the cloth when by accident the thread breaks or catches in the seam; and, second, in certain means of sewing or making a stitch similar to what is termed in hand-sewing ‘the back stitch.”
According to Miller, his mechanism was different in that it passed the needle through the cloth in two places rather than in one, as was the case with other sewing machines of the time. His brass model is strikingly handsome, and engraved on the base of the model is “Charles Miller & J. A. Ross.” Usually when a second name is so prominently displayed on a model, it indicates a second inventor. However, no mention is made of Ross in the patent specification. Interestingly, Jonathan A. Ross turns up the following year at the 1853 New York Exhibition, exhibiting a sewing machine, and is listed in the catalogue as a sewing machine manufacturer from St. Louis, Missouri.
Miller is perhaps best known for an invention some two years later. It was the first sewing machine patented to stitch buttonholes (Patent No. 10,609, issued March 7, 1854). In his patent specification, Miller describes the three different stitches, “button-hole stitch, whip stitch or herring-bone stitch,” that can be mechanically sewn to finish the buttonhole.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1852-07-20
patent date
1852-07-20
inventor
Miller, Charles
ID Number
TE.T06113
catalog number
T06113.000
patent number
009139
accession number
89797
Sewing Machine Patent Model Patent No. 8,294, issued August 12, 1851Isaac Merritt Singer of New York, New YorkThe eighth child of poor German immigrants, Isaac Singer was born on October 27, 1811, in Pittstown, New York. As a young man he worked as a mechanic and cabinetmaker.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model Patent No. 8,294, issued August 12, 1851
Isaac Merritt Singer of New York, New York
The eighth child of poor German immigrants, Isaac Singer was born on October 27, 1811, in Pittstown, New York. As a young man he worked as a mechanic and cabinetmaker. For a time he was an actor and formed his own theatrical troupe, The Merritt Players.” Needing a steadier income, Singer worked for a plant in Fredericksburg, Ohio, that manufactured wooden type for printers. Seeing the need for a better type-carving machine, he invented an improved one.
In June 1850, Singer and a partner took the machine to Boston looking for financial support. He rented display space in the workshop of Orson C. Phelps. Here Singer became intrigued with the sewing machine that Phelps was building for John A. Lerow and Sherburne C. Blodgett. Analyzing the flaws of the Lerow and Blodgett sewing machine, Singer devised a machine that used a shuttle that moved in a straight path—as opposed to theirs, which moved around in a complete circle. He visualized replacing their curved horizontal needle with a straight, vertically moving needle. Phelps approved of Singer’s ideas and Isaac worked on perfecting his machine.
For his first patent model, Isaac Singer submitted a commercial sewing machine. He was granted Patent No. 8,294, on August 12, 1851. These commercial sewing machines were built in Orson C. Phelps’s machine shop in Boston. The head, base cams, and gear wheels of the machine were made of cast iron; to fit together, these parts had to be filed and ground by hand. The machine made a lockstitch by using a straight, eye-pointed needle and a reciprocating shuttle. The specific patent claims allowed were for: 1) the additional forward motion of the shuttle to tighten the stitch; 2) the use of a friction pad to control the tension of the thread from the spool; and 3) placing the spool of thread on an adjustable arm to permit thread to be used as needed.
Always the showman, Singer relished exhibiting his invention at social gatherings and was masterful in convincing the women present that the sewing machine was a tool they could learn to use. The machine was transported in its packing crate, which served as a stand; it contained a wooden treadle that allowed the seamstress to power the machine with her feet, leaving both hands free to guide the cloth. This early, heavy-duty Singer machine was designed for use in the manufacturing trades rather than in the home.
model constructed
before 1851-08-12
patent date
1851-08-12
inventor
Singer, Isaac M.
ID Number
TE.T06054
accession number
48865
catalog number
T06054.000
patent number
008294
Spindle and Flyer Patent ModelPatent No. 781, issued June 12, 1838Richard E.
Description
Spindle and Flyer Patent Model
Patent No. 781, issued June 12, 1838
Richard E. Yerkes of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
According to his patent specification, Yerkes patented “the revolving arrangement and combination of the sliding shaft, with the broach, or with the spool, for the purpose of removing and renewing the latter . . . .” The action of the sliding shaft enabled the operator to remove and change the spool when the spring was pressed down. In addition, he patented the ring in combination with the flyers that distributed the yarn on the spool. Yerkes intended his improvements to be used on machines for spinning cotton and other fibers.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1838-06-12
patent date
1838-06-12
inventor
Yerkes, Richard E.
ID Number
TE.T11420.080
catalog number
T11420.080
accession number
89797
patent number
781
Hand Card Patent ModelPatent No. 863, issued August 1, 1838George Faber of Canton, OhioFaber’s patent related to the construction of the common hand card used for carding cotton or wool prior to the spinning process.
Description
Hand Card Patent Model
Patent No. 863, issued August 1, 1838
George Faber of Canton, Ohio
Faber’s patent related to the construction of the common hand card used for carding cotton or wool prior to the spinning process. He specifically patented using wood veneer, instead of leather, for the foundation that contained the card’s wire teeth. The wood was cut from 1/8 to 3/16 of an inch in thickness, 4 inches in width, and 4 to 8 inches in length. The wood was then steeped in water to soften it so that when placed in a card-making machine, it could be pricked and the teeth inserted. The veneer was nailed to another piece of wood and a handle inserted to form the hand card.
Although Faber did not claim credit for inventing the card-making machine, in his patent specification he did mention that he had made improvements on it.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1838-08-01
patent date
1838-08-01
inventor
Faber, George
ID Number
TE.T11396.030
catalog number
T11396.030
accession number
89797
patent number
863
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 2,982 issued March 4, 1843.Benjamin W. Bean of New York, New YorkThe second American patent (Patent No. 2,982) for a sewing machine was granted to Benjamin W. Bean on March 4, 1843.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 2,982 issued March 4, 1843.
Benjamin W. Bean of New York, New York
The second American patent (Patent No. 2,982) for a sewing machine was granted to Benjamin W. Bean on March 4, 1843. Bean’s machine made a running stitch by feeding the fabric between the teeth of a series of gears and onto a threaded bent needle. Turning the crank-handle from left to right moves the gearing in a similar motion to a crimping machine. The stationary crooked needle lays in a groove in the gears, with a point at one end and an eye at the other. A wooden screw clamp secures the machine to the worktable.
This invention was similar to Greenough’s in making a running stitch, but the approach was different. Bean’s method, like Greenough’s, was yet another attempt to emulate hand sewing. Although Bean’s running stitch machine had little commercial success, small inexpensive machines were later sold in the 1860s for household use based on this principle. It remained for Elias Howe, three years later, to patent a sewing machine using a lockstitch that functioned differently from the movements of hand sewing.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1843-03-04
patent date
1843-03-04
inventor
Bean, Benjamin W.
ID Number
TE.T06049
catalog number
T06049.000
patent number
002982
accession number
48865
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 9,041, issued June 15, 1852Allen Benjamin Wilson of Watertown, Connecticut.Allen B. Wilson was one of the most creative and innovative of the early inventors.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 9,041, issued June 15, 1852
Allen Benjamin Wilson of Watertown, Connecticut.
Allen B. Wilson was one of the most creative and innovative of the early inventors. Born in Willett, New York, in 1823, he was apprenticed at age sixteen as a cabinetmaker. Later in 1847, he moved to Adrian, Michigan, and worked as a journeyman cabinetmaker. It was here, far removed from New England and the efforts by other inventors, that he began to design a different sewing machine. After recovering from an illness, he moved back east to Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and began to perfect his new concept for a sewing machine.
In 1850, Wilson developed a prototype for a reciprocating-shuttle machine. When the needle went through the cloth, it formed a loop below the seam. A shuttle that was pointed on both ends held a second thread that was passed through the loop and as the tension on the thread was tightened, a lockstitch was made. This shuttle could be moved both forward and backwards to form a stitch on both movements, unlike the shuttles of Hunt and Howe, which only created a stitch in one direction.
Based on these same ideas, he made a second machine that he submitted to the U.S. Patent Office and was granted Patent No. 7,776 on November 12, 1850. Presumably, Wilson’s skills as a cabinetmaker came into use with this model as it is almost entirely made out of wood and painted black to look like metal. Constructing a model out of wood, rather than metal, was a less expensive and easier way to build, requiring fewer specialized tools. On the underside of the metal raceway is stamped “Deall & Sons,” evidence that Wilson used a machinist to fabricate this part.
Fortunately, Wilson met Nathaniel Wheeler, partner of the firm of Warren and Woodruff of Watertown, Connecticut. He moved to Watertown to join in the partnership and to continue to perfect his sewing machine.
In his second patent (Patent No. 8,296, issued August 12, 1851) Wilson developed the rotary hook and bobbin to replace the shuttle mechanism in his first patent (Patent No. 7776, issued November 12, 1850.) The rotary hook opened the loop of the needle thread, while a reciprocating bobbin carried the second thread through the loop to complete the lockstitch.
In order to avoid patent litigation that the reciprocating bobbin might have caused, Wilson developed his third unique invention, the stationary bobbin (Patent No. 9,041, issued June 15, 1852.) In Wilson’s rotary hook and stationary bobbin, the lockstitch was made by locking the needle thread with the bobbin thread by passing the needle thread loop under the bobbin. The driving shaft carried the circular rotary hook, which resulted in a revolutionary method of sewing.
For his patent model, Wilson submitted a commercial Wheeler and Wilson sewing machine that had been manufactured the previous year. The evolution of his ideas from the simple wooden model to the successful manufactured machine beautifully illustrates the progress of his novel inventions.
In 1853 the Wheeler and Wilson Manufacturing Company was organized to manufacture sewing machines based on Allen Wilson patents. In 1856, the company moved to Bridgeport, Connecticut, and became the largest and most successful manufacturer of sewing machines in the 1850s and 1860s.
Location
Currently on loan
model constructed
before 1852-06-15
patent date
1852-06-15
inventor
Wilson, Allen B.
ID Number
TE.T06055
catalog number
T06055.000
patent number
009041
accession number
48865
Loom Shuttle Patent ModelPatent No. 1,485, issued on January 31, 1840James Baldwin of Nashua, New HampshireBaldwin’s patent consisted of a steel spring and catch made in one piece that fits inside the wooden bobbin.
Description
Loom Shuttle Patent Model
Patent No. 1,485, issued on January 31, 1840
James Baldwin of Nashua, New Hampshire
Baldwin’s patent consisted of a steel spring and catch made in one piece that fits inside the wooden bobbin. In his patent specification, he claimed this avoided the expense of separate catches and springs that were in the common shuttle as then in use. The arrangement and construction of the spring and catch were such that pushing the bobbin down on the spindle and into the mouth of the shuttle secured the bobbin on the catch. By pulling up on the bobbin, the head of the spindle pushed down on the spring, which in turn disengaged the catch and released the bobbin. These improvements make it easier for the bobbin changer to replenish the shuttle with thread.
An earlier notice of Baldwin’s loom shuttle appears in the Journal of the American Institute. In 1838, at the eleventh Annual Fair of the American Institute, James and E. Baldwin were awarded a diploma for an improved loom shuttle. On May 3, 1859, James Baldwin was successful in having the shuttle awarded Reissue Patent No. 710.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1840-01-31
patent date
1840-01-31
inventor
Baldwin, James
ID Number
TE.T11418.011
catalog number
T11418.011
accession number
89797
patent number
1,485
Sewing Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 7,931, issued on February 11, 1851William O. Grover and William E. Baker of Roxbury, MassachusettsWilliam O. Grover, a tailor working in Boston, believed that the sewing machine would transform the clothing industry.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 7,931, issued on February 11, 1851
William O. Grover and William E. Baker of Roxbury, Massachusetts
William O. Grover, a tailor working in Boston, believed that the sewing machine would transform the clothing industry. Seeing that the available sewing machines were not very practical, he began in 1849 to devise a different machine. He developed a new stitch that was made by interlocking two threads in a series of slipknots. Another Boston tailor, William E. Baker, shared Grover’s vision and became his partner in the project.
They received Patent No. 7,931 on February 11, 1851, for a double chain stitch made with two threads. The stitch was made using a vertical eye-pointed needle for the top thread and a horizontal needle for the under thread.
The Grover and Baker Sewing Machine Company was organized in 1851. Jacob Weatherill, mechanic, and Orlando B. Potter, lawyer, joined the firm. It was Potter who saw that the numerous lawsuits over patent rights were strangling the growth of the fledging sewing machine industry. In 1856, his work lead to the formation of the Sewing Machine Combination also called the Sewing Machine Trust. This organization consisted of three sewing machine manufacturers, I. M. Singer Co., Wheeler & Wilson Co., and the Grover & Baker Co., and the inventor, Elias Howe Jr., who all agreed to pool their important patents and stop patent litigation between them. This allowed them to move ahead with manufacturing and marketing of their own sewing machines and collecting license fees from other companies wanting to use their patents.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1851-02-11
patent date
1851-02-11
inventor
Grover, William O.
Baker, William E.
ID Number
TE.T06053
catalog number
T06053.000
patent number
007931
accession number
48865
Hair Cloth Loom Patent ModelPatent No. 490, issued November 25, 1837Charles R. Harvey of Poughkeepsie, New YorkWeaving with horsehair was difficult and slow because the weaver had to select an individual horsehair for each weft and insert it into the warp.
Description
Hair Cloth Loom Patent Model
Patent No. 490, issued November 25, 1837
Charles R. Harvey of Poughkeepsie, New York
Weaving with horsehair was difficult and slow because the weaver had to select an individual horsehair for each weft and insert it into the warp. Harvey’s loom was a step toward mechanizing this process. But Harvey dealt only with changing from a hand loom to a power loom, not with the problem of weaving with horsehair. Even in his patent specification, he mentioned that the “hook” (a simple wooden rod with a hook at one end by which the horsehair was drawn in to be woven) is “made in the usual way.” Harvey detailed his improvements as the application of power to both the movement of the hook and the operation of the loom overall.
At the tenth Annual Fair of the American Institute in 1837, Harvey was awarded a gold medal for his “hair seating loom.” The Journal of the American Institute, published in 1838, remarked that “this is the first application of power to weaving hair cloth; and concerning the extent of the article [hair cloth] now used for furniture, we think the loom is entitled to the highest consideration.”
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1837-11-25
patent date
1837-11-25
inventor
Harvey, Charles R.
ID Number
TE.T11411.035
accession number
89797
catalog number
T11411.035
patent number
490
Take-Up and Let-Off for Power Looms Patent ModelPatent No. 758, issued May 30, 1838Stephen Kimball of Putney, VermontKimball’s patent refers to the application of friction to the yarn beam of a power loom.
Description
Take-Up and Let-Off for Power Looms Patent Model
Patent No. 758, issued May 30, 1838
Stephen Kimball of Putney, Vermont
Kimball’s patent refers to the application of friction to the yarn beam of a power loom. This was accomplished by using a belt, made of steel or iron, which formed nearly a circle around the warp beam. Friction was created by adjusting a screw that caused the circular belt to contract or expand in turn, to increase or decrease the drag on the beam. An elliptical spring eased the movement of the beam within the belt and helped maintain the evenness of the cloth.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1838-05-30
patent date
1838-05-30
inventor
Kimball, Stephen
ID Number
TE.T11412.002
catalog number
T11412.002
accession number
89797
patent number
758
Sewing Machine Patent Model . Patent No. 6439, issued May 8, 1849John Bachelder of Boston, Massachusetts.John Bachelder of Boston, Massachusetts, submitted this sewing machine patent model for his Patent No. 6439, which was granted on May 8, 1849.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model . Patent No. 6439, issued May 8, 1849
John Bachelder of Boston, Massachusetts.
John Bachelder of Boston, Massachusetts, submitted this sewing machine patent model for his Patent No. 6439, which was granted on May 8, 1849. Bachelder’s machine sewed with a chain-stitch. He did not claim this chain-stitch mechanism as it was patented earlier in February in 1849 by Charles Morey and Joseph B. Johnson of Massachusetts. Instead he focused on improving the cloth feed. On this model, Bachelder used a wide continuous leather belt inserted with sharp pins to hold the cloth and enable the leather belt to move the cloth forward as it was being sewn. After being stitched, the fabric would be disengaged from the points by a curved piece of metal. This was the first patent for a continuous sewing, intermittent feeding mechanism.
Although Bachelder did not manufacture his sewing machine, his patent and later reissues of it were bought by I. M. Singer, and became one of the central patents to form the Sewing Machine Combination in 1856. This organization consisted of three sewing machine manufacturers, I. M. Singer Co., Wheeler & Wilson Co., and the Grover & Baker Co., and the inventor, Elias Howe Jr., who all agreed to pool their important patents and stop patent litigations between them. This allowed them to move ahead with manufacturing and marketing of their own sewing machine and collect license fees from other companies wanting to use their patents.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1849-05-08
patent date
1849-05-08
inventor
Bachelder, John
ID Number
TE.T06051
catalog number
T06051.000
patent number
006439
accession number
89797
Loom Shuttle Tongues Patent ModelPatent No. 162, issued April 17, 1837Comfort B. Thorp of Smithfield, Rhode IslandComfort Thorp, the younger brother of textile machinery inventor John Thorp, worked for Thomas and William Fletcher in their mill near North Providence.
Description
Loom Shuttle Tongues Patent Model
Patent No. 162, issued April 17, 1837
Comfort B. Thorp of Smithfield, Rhode Island
Comfort Thorp, the younger brother of textile machinery inventor John Thorp, worked for Thomas and William Fletcher in their mill near North Providence. His patent improved the method of securing and holding the cop, or yarn cylinder, on the common power loom shuttle, preventing slips that would waste yarn and cause imperfections in the woven cloth.
The patent model he submitted contained two types of tongues. One used a common round tongue with wire spiraled around it. The other consisted of a tongue with ridges or notches similar to the teeth of a saw blade. The two loom shuttle tongues were neatly exhibited in a box, probably to keep them from being separated or lost in the cases at the Patent Office.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1837-04-17
patent date
1837-04-17
inventor
Thorp, Comfort B.
ID Number
TE.T11418.002
catalog number
T11418.002
accession number
89797
patent number
162
Sewing Machine Patent ModelPatent No. 7,824, issued December 10, 1850Frederick R. Robinson of Boston, MassachusettsIn his Annual Report to the Congress of Patents for 1850, Commissioner Thomas Ewbank stated that 995 patents were issued. One of those patents was to Frederick R.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 7,824, issued December 10, 1850
Frederick R. Robinson of Boston, Massachusetts
In his Annual Report to the Congress of Patents for 1850, Commissioner Thomas Ewbank stated that 995 patents were issued. One of those patents was to Frederick R. Robinson for improvements to sewing machines. Robinson’s patent was used commercially by the firm of Howard & Davis of Boston to manufacture sewing machines. In addition to using Robinson’s patent, the machines they built utilized improvements patented by Sylvester H. Roper of Worcester, Massachusetts (Patent No. 11,521 issued on August 15, 1854) and with additional improvements (Patent No. 16,026 issued on November 4, 1856). Howard & Davis were best known for their manufacture of high-grade clocks and watches, although they also built fire engines and precision balances.
As Robinson stated, “The object of my invention is to produce either what is generally termed ‘stitch and back stitch’ sewing, or ordinary stitching.” He notes that this is frequently called the running stitch or basting stitch. His specific patent claim was “The combination of two needles, two thread-guides, and a cloth-holder made to operate together . . . and . . . the improvement of making the needles with springs and applying mouth-pieces or pressers to them, and on each side of the flange of the base-plate . . .”
Scientific American, November 1, 1856, describes the machine based on the patents mentioned above as: “Robinson & Roper exhibit their new improved sewing machines, which appear to operate with great success. Two needles are employed, the points of which are furnished with hooks that alternately catch the thread and form the stitch. The finest kind of cotton thread or silk can be used.”
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1850-12-10
patent date
1850-12-10
inventor
Robinson, Frederick R.
ID Number
TE.T06111
catalog number
T.6111
accession number
89797
patent number
7824
Calico Printing Machine Patent ModelPatent No.
Description
Calico Printing Machine Patent Model
Patent No. 823, issued on July 9, 1838
Alden Sibley of Pawtucket, Massachusetts
Sibley’s improvement concerned the arrangement of the color box, which held the coloring matter used in printing; the furnishing roll, which supplied the coloring matter to the printing roll; and the doctor, which acted as a scraper to remove any superfluous color from the cylinder. In his patent specification, Sibley stated that the advantage of his machine was “being able to work as heavy an Engraving, last as first, or second, and by which means you can place the Light, delicate colors, first and Black or Chocolate last or as you please.” His patent model shows only one engraved copper roller although the machine was designed to do three- or four-color work with multiple rollers.
Sibley recommended using flour instead of gum to thicken the coloring matter. He calculated that to print 175 pieces, it was necessary to use 42 pounds of gum senegal at 22 cents a pound, which added up to $9.24; whereas 42 pounds of flour cost only 5 cents a pound, for a sum of $2.10. That totaled up to a savings of $7.14 if the flour was used. Whether the use of flour was ever adopted is not known.
By 1836, textile mills in the United States had printed 120 million yards of calicoes. Calico printing was popular among manufacturers largely due to the fact that the printing only added one step to the finishing process and did not affect or complicate the weaving process.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1838-07-09
patent date
1838-07-09
inventor
Sibley, Alden
ID Number
TE.T11398.012
catalog number
T11398.012
patent number
823
accession number
89797
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 4,750, issued September 10, 1846. Elias Howe Jr. of Cambridge, Massachusetts.While working as a journeyman machinist, Elias Howe Jr. wrestled for years to find a way to mechanize sewing.
Description
Sewing Machine Patent Model. Patent No. 4,750, issued September 10, 1846. Elias Howe Jr. of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
While working as a journeyman machinist, Elias Howe Jr. wrestled for years to find a way to mechanize sewing. With the family pinched by poverty, his wife sewed for others by hand at home. Watching her sew, Howe visualized ways to mechanize the process. In 1845, he built his first sewing machine and soon constructed an improved model, which he carried to the Patent Office in Washington to apply for a patent. He received the fifth United States patent (No. 4,750) for a sewing machine in 1846.
Howe’s model used a grooved and curved eye-pointed needle carried by a vibrating arm. The needle was provided with thread from a spool. Loops of thread from the needle were locked by a second thread carried by a shuttle, which moved through the loop by means of reciprocating drivers.
The cloth hung vertically, impaled on pins on a metal baster plate. The baster plate moved intermittently under the needle by means of a toothed wheel. The length of each stitching operation depended upon the length of the baster plate, and only straight seams could be sewn. When the end of the baster plate reached the position of the needle, the sewing was stopped. The cloth was removed from the baster plate, and the plate was moved back to its original position. The cloth was repositioned on the pins and the process was repeated until the sewing was finished. This resulted in an imperfect way to sew, but it marked the beginning of successful mechanized sewing.
Howe’s patent claims were upheld in court to allow his claim to control the combination of the eye-pointed needle with a shuttle to form a lockstitch. Howe met with limited success in marketing his sewing machine. Subsequent inventors patented their versions of sewing machines, some of which infringed on Howe’s patent. He quickly realized his fortune depended on defending his patent and collecting royalty fees from sewing machine manufacturers. These royalty licenses granted companies the right to use the Howe patent on their machines.
In 1856, after years of lawsuits over patent rights, Elias Howe and three companies, Wheeler & Wilson, Grover and Baker, and I. M. Singer, formed the first patent pool in American industry. The organization was called the Sewing Machine Combination and/or the Sewing Machine Trust. This freed the companies from expensive and time-consuming litigation and enabled them to concentrate on manufacturing and marketing their machines.
Location
Currently not on view
model constructed
before 1846-09-10
patent date
1846-09-10
inventor
Howe, Jr., Elias
model maker
Howe, Jr., Elias
ID Number
TE.T06050
catalog number
T.6050
patent number
004750
accession number
48865
Before William Crompton’s 1837 patent for a fancy power loom was adopted, the harnesses of power looms were controlled by cams. This arrangement limited the number of harnesses that could be utilized, which in turn limited the complexity of patterns that could be woven.
Description
Before William Crompton’s 1837 patent for a fancy power loom was adopted, the harnesses of power looms were controlled by cams. This arrangement limited the number of harnesses that could be utilized, which in turn limited the complexity of patterns that could be woven. In order to vary the pattern, the cams had to be laboriously changed. Crompton’s invention solved both of these problems. In his patent, an endless pattern chain was used, upon which rollers or pins could be variously placed to engage the harness levers (as had the cams) but which allowed any number of harnesses to be used and easily permitted the changing of patterns. Now more elaborate designs could be easily woven on power looms.
In 1806 William Crompton was born in the textile mill town of Preston, England. He was taught how to weave on a cotton hand loom and learned the trade of a machinist. He was thirty when he came to Taunton, Massachusetts, and was employed by Crocker and Richmond. At this textile mill he designed a loom to weave a new more complex patterned fabric. The mill failed in 1837 and Crompton went back to England. He entered into cotton manufacture with John Rostran, and took out a British patent for his loom under Rostran’s name.
Later in 1839 Crompton emigrated with his family back to the United States in order to promote his looms. He met with success when the Middlesex Mills in Lowell, Massachusetts, invited him to alter his fancy cotton loom for the weaving of woolen fabrics. This he accomplished in 1840, and it was considered an important landmark for the woolen industry. In his book, American Textile Machinery, John Hayes quotes the Committee on Patents of the United States House of Representatives, 1878: “ . . . upon the Crompton loom or looms based on it, are woven every yard of fancy cloth in the world.”
In 1849, William’s health declined and his son, George, carried on the business. Like his father, George was an inventor and patented many improvements for the loom. After 1859, the Crompton Loom Work became one of the two largest fancy loom manufacturers in the United States.
Patent No. 491 Issued November 25, 1837
William Crompton of Taunton, Massachusetts
model constructed
before 1837-11-25
patent date
1837-11-25
inventor
Crompton, William
ID Number
TE.T11411.001
accession number
89797
catalog number
T11411.001
patent number
491

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.