Hand Carder (Cotton Card)

Hand Carder (Cotton Card)

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Description
This is a wool carder owned by the Copp family of Stonington, Connecticut during the 18th and 19th century. The carding process is part of preparing wool for spinning into yarn. Wool is brushed between two hand carders (see DL*006833.02) to align fibers in the same direction. The wool is rolled off the carder into a rolag and then spun.
The Copp Collection contains a variety of household objects that the Copp family of Connecticut used from around 1700 until the mid-1800s. Part of the Puritan Great Migration from England to Boston, the family eventually made their home in New London County, Connecticut, where their textiles, clothes, utensils, ceramics, books, bibles, and letters provide a vivid picture of daily life. More of the collection from the Division of Home and Community Life can be viewed by searching accession number 28810.
Location
Currently not on view
Object Name
carder, hand
date made
late 19th century
1804 - 1813
user
Copp Family
place made
United States: Massachusetts, Leicester
place used
United States: Connecticut, Stonington
Physical Description
beech (board; handle material)
leather (carding cloth; tacking strips material)
wire, steel (teeth material)
Measurements
overall: 9 1/2 in x 9 7/8 in x 1 1/4 in; 24.13 cm x 25.0825 cm x 3.175 cm
carding surface (across teeth only): 3 1/4 in x 8 3/4 in x 1/4 in; 8.255 cm x 22.225 cm x.635 cm
ID Number
DL.006833.01
accession number
28810
catalog number
6833.01
Credit Line
Gift of John Brenton Copp
subject
Household Tools and Equipment
Textile Processing and Production
Quakers
See more items in
Home and Community Life: Domestic Life
Copp Collection
Data Source
National Museum of American History
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