Length of Cheney Brothers printed Tussah Silk fabric. Plain weave with thick wild silk weft. Pattern: Arts and crafts-inspired stylized leaf and vine ogees in muted shades of purple-grey, light green. blue, yellow on off-white ground. (W. 50 in., L. 35 3/4 in.)
Sample length of a Cheney Brothers silk velvet. Black silk pile warp; black cotton ground warp and weft. Solid cut pile surface. White twill selvage with white cotton warp, outer-edge black stripe. One cut edge is machine hemmed. (W. 18-1/2 in., L. 1 yard.) Possibly a millinery or trimming fabric as it is a narrow fabric off the loom.
Sample length of Cheney Brothers lightweight panne velvet, 1913, Solid color, solid cut pile velvet. Lightweight. Probably an artificial silk pile on a silk ground. Deep blue, lustrous pile, pressed flat; Ground warp and weft in the same shade of blue, probably silk. Significant discoloration on one half of sample. (W. 20-1/2 in., L. 1 yard.) Millinery or trimming style velvet.
Cheney Brothers piece-dyed "Showerproof" Silk Foulard, 1913. Lightweight 2-up, 2-down twill weave. Piece dyed in Navy Blue. "Showerproof" quality and trade name, indicating it would not spot in light rain. (W. 23 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.). Trade materials indicate that this quality was made from "Japan reeled silk warp and weft". It was also a commonly used print cloth, for women's apparel. Foulard was also used for men's neckwear.
Length of Cheney Brothers wash silk. Lightweight plain weave. Yarn dyed, warp stripes. Blue and grey stripes on white ground. Cheney Silks retail label attached to sample with glue or adhesive (W. 32 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.) A page from a Cheney Silks sales sample book, in the DOT study sample files, shows four additional colorways.
Length of Cheney Brothers medium weight black silk solid cut pile velvet. Silk pile warp and ground warp; cotton ground weft. Red twill weave selvages and red machine hem on one cut edge. (W. 18 in., L. 1 yard.) Possibly a millinery or trimming fabric as it is a narrow fabric off the loom.
Sample length of a Cheney Brothers midweight, semi-stiff finish, solid cut pile black silk velvet. Black silk pile warp, black cotton ground warp and weft. Red cotton warp in the twill selvage edges. One cut edge is machine hemmed (serged or merrowed with red thread). (W. 18-1/2 in., L. 1 yard.) Possibly a millinery or trimming fabric as it is a narrow fabric off the loom.
Length of Cheney Brothers "Tussah Pongee" dress silk. Medium weight plain weave with slubbed effect from irregular weft yarns. The quality was usually yarn dyed: this example, with a color name of 'Champagne', is actually the natural beige of the undyed tussah (usually meaning from wild silkworms) silk. Cheney Silks retail label glued to length, identifies fabric as "Tussah pongee". (W. 54 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.)
Length of Cheney Brothers "Satin Panne" dress silk, 1913. High sheen satin weave; soft hand, medium weight. Piece dyed. Pale Blue. Cheney Silks label glued to sample identifies it as "satin panne". 4 in. square cut from corner of the length.(W. 45 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.) The word 'panne' is usually applied to a velvet with the pile flattened in one direction to create a high luster surface. THis satin weave may also have been run through a roller to heighten its luster.
Length of Cheney Brothers silk and wool Bengaline. A ribbed, warp-faced plain weave with a soft 'hand'. Silk warp and thicker wool weft forming the crosswise ribs. Piece dyed Navy Blue, with a low luster. Primary use for women's apparel.. Cheney Silk retail label attached with glue or adhesive. (W. 45 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.) 1913.
Length of Cheney Brothers Wash silk fabric. Lightweight plain weave. Yarn dyed. Green striped white with black accent pinstripe. Cheney Silks retail label attached to length with glue or adhesive. (W. 32 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.). A page from a Cheney Silks sales sample book, in the DOT study sample files, shows four additional colorways.
Obverse Text: 5 / NATIONAL CURRENCY SECURED BY UNITED STATES BONDS DEPOSITED WITH THE TREASURER OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / SERIES OF 1929 / NEW YORK NEW YORK WILL PAY TO THE BEARER ON DEMAND FIVE DOLLARS / B658146A / 2370 / LINCOLN / REDEEMABLE IN LAWFUL MONEY OF THE UNITED STATES AT UNITED STATES TREASURY OR AT THE BANK OF ISSUE
Reverse Image: Lincoln Memorial.
Reverse Text: 5 / FIVE / THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / LINCOLN MEMORIAL / FIVE DOLLARS
General Information: National Bank Note. Charter number 2370.
Sample of Collins & Aikman Corporation figured upholstery moquette (velvet), 1929. Solid cut pile jacquard-patterned cotton velvet, with dark red (wine colored) ground, and a non-directional pattern of scattered small flower sprigs and leaves in several colors: off white, yellow, golden-brown, light and medium lavender, purple, light, medium and dark green, pink, medium and dark red, dark brown. The warp pile patterning threads are carried down the back of the fabric when not in use, giving weight and thickness to the fabric. The color variations are organized in vertical bands across the fabric width: reds, yellows, purples. Half width. Machine overlocked on three sides; no selvage.
Collins & Aikman Corporation was founded in 1891 and incorporated in 1929. The company made high end upholstery fabrics, including velvets and plushes in cotton, mohair, and silk, and beginning in the 1910s, artifical silk (rayon). Early on the firm competed successfully in the market for automotive and aviation fabrics. In the 1920s the company had mills in Astoria (Queens), New York; Philadelphia, PA; and North Carolina.
Sample of Collins & Aikman Corporation figured upholstery velvet, 1929. Jacquard-woven voided velvet.with polychrome cotton and rayon cut pile design against a twill weave ground. Tan ground weft, cotton. Large scale foliate folral design. The pile colors shade into one another in vertical bands across the width. The pile warps are tied into the ground weft in a twill weave, which also shades the voided ground in vertical bands. Colors: rust, teal, gray, pink, dark brown, red, blue, light blue. Half width.
Collins & Aikman Corporation was founded in 1891 and incorporated in 1929. The company made high end upholstery fabrics, including velvets and plushes in cotton, mohair, and silk, and beginning in the 1910s, artifical silk (rayon). Early on the firm competed successfully in the market for automotive and aviation fabrics. In the 1920s the company had mills in Astoria (Queens), New York; Philadelphia, PA; and North Carolina.
Sample of Collins & Aikman figured cotton upholstery velvet, 1929. Multi-colored, yarn-dyed, jacquard woven cotton pile fabric with twill weave ground. A large bold floral pattern in bouquet effect stands out in relief on a twill weave background where the pile yarn interweaves with the ground structure. This ground work is ornamented by occasional colored warps brought to the surface in a seed effect. The floral pattern is also ornamented within the design motifs by striping or seeding in different shades of the same color family: eg yellows and tan, pink and red, light and dark blue, aqua and olive. The seed effect is also seen in these color combinations, with the addition of dark brown. Predominatly greens, gray, rusts. One specimen, a half width. Machine overlocked on three sides; no selvage.
Collins & Aikman Corporation was founded in 1891 and incorporated in 1929. The company made high end upholstery fabrics, including velvets and plushes in cotton, mohair, and silk, and beginning in the 1910s, artifical silk (rayon). Early on the firm competed successfully in the market for automotive and aviation fabrics. In the 1920s the company had mills in Astoria (Queens), New York; Philadelphia, PA; and North Carolina.
Rockland Silk Co. "Gros de Londre" dress silk; 1918. Glace fabric with very fine, flat crosswise ribs; lighter in weight than faille. Used as a ground cloth for 'camouflage' in making up. Color: Canary and flesh. One sample, 36.5" L x 36" w. . Rockland Silk Co. Mill at Haverstraw, NY; Sales offices at 77 Madison Ave, New York, NY. Given in January 1918. Rockland was in operation at least by 1895, and was purchased by H.K.H Silk Co. in 1921.
Rockland Silk Co. "Camouflage" design crepe; 1918. Printed silk crepe, titled 'Camouflage'. Diaphanous crepe of special weave construction in inifinitesimal armure effects, printed with an allover pattern in a spider web design in smoke gray on a tan ground. Rockland Silk Co. Mill at Haverstraw, NY; Sales offices at 77 Madison Ave, New York, NY. Given in January 1918. Rockland was in operation at least by 1895, and was purchased by H.K.H Silk Co. in 1921.
Length of Cheney Brothers Chiffon Taffeta dress silk, 1913. All-silk. Very lightweight plain weave but with a slightly stiff taffeta-like finish. Yarn dyed. Reseda green (a medium leaf-green) (W. 36 in., L. 1-1/2 yd.) The sample was folded along several vertical creases, accelerating severe shattering into eight 4.5"x 36" strips. Cheney Silks retail label glued to corner of sample. The shattering of the silk suggests that this was not a pure-dye fabric, but was weighted with metal salts.
