EVENTS IN WEAVING HISTORY

Weaving was the most common skill that was brought to America by Irish Immigrants. Hand weaving is still practiced today. Forms of weaving, that is the use of processed material for garments, begins with earliest man. Figurines from 25,000 B.C. show loin cloth in strains suggesting primitive spun cloth. In about 6000 B.C. there is some evidence suggesting the use of a loom. By 5000 B.C. there was cotton cultivation in the Tehucan Vally of Mexico. In about 3200 B. C. China began to cultivate silk moths for cloth. Quality linens were used to wrap mummies in Ancient Egypt. Later, Alexander the Great commented on the wonderful printed cotton cloth of India during his conquest of 327 B C. Near the beginning of the Christian Era, 63 B.C., some awnings in Rome were made of cotton. About 400 years later in the Roman Empire, a pound of fine quality silk in 300 A.D. was purchased for a pound of Gold.

Thus we see, going back in human history, good cloth could be worth its weight in gold.

In 900 A.D. King Alfred encouraged the production of wool in England. Flanders was a great wool weaving center during the Middle Ages and interactions with the British Isles helped establish weaving there. The crusades helped spread knowledge of cotton through Europe while the Spanish brought sheep for food and clothing to the New World. Over time, Irish weavers produced linens known for their superior quality. They were also able to produce woven goods more cheaply than those made in England.

In the 1800,s power looms were made displacing many skilled workers. At about the same time the sewing machine was invented by Walter Hunt in the U.S. By 1861 the soldiers in the Union Army wore uniforms of cloth that was machine loomed and sewn. By 1930 95% of all looms were automatically controlled. By the 1950's artificial fibers such rayon and nylon were commonly used in the American garment industry. Garment industry workers in the United States often have been newly arrived immigrants who work for lower wages than most American workers. Today, garments made of hand loomed fabrics are a true luxury made by skilled crafts persons who still carry on the best tradition of the past.