Arlington Mills worsted fabric process sample, 1940. Very dark navy blue wool; herringbone twill weave; Process label reads: "Worsted cloth from 3/8 Blood Staple Territory Wool". Good condition, one moth hole; with a 4x5 cut off one corner. [Originally part of an Arlington Woolen Mills process display board; dismantled, probably before 1980.]
Several of the process samples in this group are labeled with where the wool came from. "Territory" wool came from the American west; "3/8 Blood" probably meant only 3/8 merino sheep in the mix. Territory, also called Range wools, comprised a large and important segment of US wool-growing, but into the early 20th century the wools were often characterized as being badly sheared and packed, dirty and with a lot of plant material caught in the fleeces.
Note from cataloger, 1980: "Cloth has been fulled so probably not worsted."
Arlington Mills, successor to Arlington Woolen Mills, was one of the premier woolen and worsted companies in the US for many decades. The mills were in and around Lawrence, MA, and company headquarters was in Boston. American manufacturers of woolen and worsted yarns and of woven and knitted textiles relied on both American-grown wool and on imports of raw wool and partially processed wool fiber, called "tops", American growers never produced more than about half the raw wool needed by the American manufacturing sector.
Sample length of Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company, "Railroad Plush" upholstery fabric, "in the gray"; 1914. Scoured and sheared. Used for covering seats in railroad cars. 25 1/2" wide. The sample is as it comes off the loom before dyeing: ground warp is blue, the ground weft is red, and the pile is white. Given by Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company, headquartered in Boston with a mill in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1914, along with samples of mohair fiber in various stages of processing, and samples of the company's finished textiles.
A sample length of The Shelton Looms "Bloom Pluvel" mohair pile fabric; 1914. A trademarked pile fabric quality between a velvet and a plush in feel. Solid cut mohair pile, flattened, in shaded or ombred light to deep blue, and a cotton back with a black warp and blue weft,. 56" wide; 1 sample. One of a group of pile fabrics given in 1914 (accessioned in 1915) by Sidney Blumenthal and Co., Inc, owner and operator of The Shelton Looms, one of the best known and most important American pile fabric producers., whose mills were in Shelton, Connecticut. Original fabric woven 56" wide.
Photograph, black & white: Woolen Carding - Feeder. American Woolen Co., The National & Providence Worsted Mills, Providence, RI. 1912.
One of a series of 71 photographs documenting the workings of the American Woolen Company's National & Providence Worsted Mills, part of a large donation of fibers, yarns, and fabrics by American Woolen Mills in 1912.
American Woolen Co. Pebble Cheviot Coating sample, 1912. 16 ounce, fancy mixed, twill weave with broad diagonal, and flattened nap, in Plum color. Produced by American Woolen Co's National & Providence Worsted Mills.
The Providence and National Worsted Mills, founded in Rhode Island in the 1870s, were originally two companies owned by Charles Fletcher, one a spinning and one a weaving mill for working with worsted yarns. Fletcher amalgamated the two companies into one in 1893, and then sold this company to the large Lawrence-based American Woolen Company in 1899. When the Lawrence mill workers struck against pay cuts in 1912 (the Bread and Roses strike), the American Woolen Company was one of the firms affected. The Rhode Island mills, however, did not strike.
A sample length of Shelton Looms "Fenwick Textone" pile upholstery fabric. Double height mohair cut pile fabric, the higher level pile overprinted or tipped with purple, the lower height pile not woven as densely, allowing the yellow ground to appear through it, reinforcing the ground color of the pile. Overall conventional palmette or pineapple pattern within a tracery frame: Slide repeat; 13" repeat length. Accession files states that this was formed by a second shearing of the pile at a lower level, not through a jacquard mechanism in the weave. Mfr # 46861E. 37 1/2" L x 50 1/2" W. One of a number of samples of pile fabrics given by Sidney Blumenthal & Co., Inc. owner and operator of The Shelton Looms, Shelton, CT, in 1921. Stencilled Mfrs. mark.
The Shelton Looms "Alfresco" printed mohair plush fabric; 1914. Called "Chiffon plush" by the manufacturer, this fabric has a cotton back, mohair pile, and is printed in two shades of gray with an allover pattern described as "conventional." Used for capes, trimmings, millinery, etc. Width: 48". 2 samples. One of a group of pile fabrics given in 1914 (accessioned in 1915) by Sidney Blumenthal and Co., Inc, owner and operator of The Shelton Looms, one of the best known and most important American pile fabric producers., whose mills were in Shelton, Connecticut. Original fabric woven 48" wide.
Photograph, black & white: Mending Room. American Woolen Co., The National & Providence Worsted Mills, Providence, RI. 1912.
One of a series of 71 photographs documenting the workings of the American Woolen Company's National & Providence Worsted Mills, part of a large donation of fibers, yarns, and fabrics by American Woolen Mills in 1912.
Photograph, black & white: Warp Spooling. American Woolen Co., The National & Providence Worsted Mills, Providence, RI. 1912.
One of a series of 71 photographs documenting the workings of the American Woolen Company's National & Providence Worsted Mills, part of a large donation of fibers, yarns, and fabrics by American Woolen Mills in 1912.
A length of Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company figured pile upholstery fabric, "Friezette," 1928. Cut and uncut (looped) mohair pile in dark rich brown, on a cotton back.with a black warp and a brown weft. The looped pile is arranged against the cut pile ground to create a geometric pattern in lighter brown, of a diamond grid made of dots and dashes. Manufacturer title Upholstery Plush XXXX Friezette. Pattern # 935; Color walnut, 1059. The manufacturer chemically treated this quality against moths.Massachusetts Mohair Plush Co., headquartered in Boston with a mill in Lowell, Massachusetts, sold in large part to railroads and furniture companies. Mohair plush was long-wearing and not easily crushed.
Length of Massachusetts Mohair Plush Company, figured pile woven upholstery fabric, "Friezette", 1928 Mohair pile, cut and uncut, in dark red (plum), on a striped cotton ground alternating black and yellow. Small-scale allover patterning of alternating rectangles of cut and uncut pile, the striped ground showing through and making alternate vertical rows appearing as a slightly lighter shade of red. The manufacturer described this as "narrow stripe effect, produced by alternating crosswise and lengthwise two groups of cut pile with three groups of uncut pile." Color Plum # 1231. Friezette, XXXX. The manufacturer treated this quality chemically against moths. Massachusetts Mohair Plush Co., headquartered in Boston with a mill in Lowell, Massachusett, sold in large part to railroads and furniture companies. Mohair plush was long-wearing and not easily crushed.
Photograph, black & white: French Drawing - First Drawing. American Woolen Co., The National & Providence Worsted Mills, Providence, RI. 1912.
One of a series of 71 photographs documenting the workings of the American Woolen Company's National & Providence Worsted Mills, part of a large donation of fibers, yarns, and fabrics by American Woolen Mills in 1912.
Sample length of Goodall-Sanford Inc., 'Casement cloth' fabric; in light gray. 1951. This blend of cotton and mohair was said by the manufacturer to provide "richly simple, dust shedding, casement curtains." Casement curtains, also known as 'glass curtains' were used under draperies or on their own to let in light while providing privacy.
Part of a gift of 14 fabric samples and 11 fiber samples by Goodall-Sanford Inc., Sanford, Maine, to illustrate "Fiber Blending for Better Performance", in September 1951. The Goodall Worsted Company (maker of the mohair and cotton blend fabric "Palm Beach Cloth"), and the Sanford Mills (maker of mohair and wool velvets, plushes, and imitation fur fabrics) merged in 1944 to form Goodall-Sanford Inc. Palm Beach cloth was a menswear summer staple, and was one of the first fabrics considered "easy-care", although both its components were natural fibers. This donation illustrates some of the company's other efforts at blending fibers, in this case natural and synthetic blends. Goodall-Sanford's sales headquarters were at 545 Madison Avenue, NY 22, NY.
Embroidered Net Banding. Schiffli embroidered floral design executed with pink ombre (shaded from light to dark) cotton and blue ombre cotton, bordered top and bottom with ecru cotton cord in block pattern on fine black silk net by the chemical burn-out process.
Part of a group of Schifflie machine embroidered trimmings, primarily for apparel, manufactured by Alpha Embroidery Co. of New Jersey, many of which imitated hand embroidered national and regional styles, including from China and parts of Europe. The firm's designers used the Brooklyn Institute Museum to research original examples, which were copied or from which they drew inspiration. The products were sold in foreign markets in competition with the native hand work, as well as in the U.S.
Sample length of Goodall-Sanford, Inc. women's coating fabric, undyed and unbleached, natural color; 1951. Wool and mohair blend adds resilience, durability, and lustre to this fabric meant for women's coats.
Part of a gift of 14 fabric samples and 11 fiber samples by Goodall-Sanford Inc., Sanford, Maine, to illustrate "Fiber Blending for Better Performance", in September 1951. The Goodall Worsted Company (maker of the mohair and cotton blend fabric "Palm Beach Cloth"), and the Sanford Mills (maker of mohair and wool velvets, plushes, and imitation fur fabrics) merged in 1944 to form Goodall-Sanford Inc. Palm Beach cloth was a menswear summer staple, and was one of the first fabrics considered "easy-care", although both its components were natural fibers. This donation illustrates some of the company's other efforts at blending fibers, in this case natural and synthetic blends. Goodall-Sanford's sales headquarters were at 545 Madison Avenue, NY 22, NY.
