Browse Items (25 total)
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Teakettle, circa 1800
This teakettle was brought to Bourbon County, Kentucky, by the Liter family before 1800. Tea isn't immediately thought of as an 'American' staple, but historically it was. Tea in the early 19th century was more popular than beer and teakettles were essential items for households. -
Textile shuttle, circa 1800
Shuttles were textile tools designed to carry and move yarn back and forth through the warp which in turn creates cloth. -
The Art of Cookery, made plain and easy.
An 18th-century cookbook including one hundred and fifty recipes and modes of cooking, as well as recipes for cosmetics and medicinal purposes. -
Weaving reed, circa 1800
Weaving reeds are a part of weaving looms that are used to separate and space the warp threads, which guides the shuttle’s movement across the loom and pushes weft threads into place. Reeds were interchangeable and different reeds were used to make different types of fabric. Despite many family narratives that claim female ancestors wove the textiles, generally weaving was a profession for men. However, there were exceptions, and in the Kentucky frontier there is evidence that enslaved men and women were also skilled weavers. More likely, the fiber was cultivated and harvested on the family farm. It was then prepared and spun into yarn by women who then turned it over to trained weavers who made it into cloth, which might be finished at home or sewn into clothing. In the early 20th century, during a revival of frontier craft, weaving became a skilled craft dominated by women. -
Wool comb, circa 1800
In addition to flax, wool was an important fiber during the colonial and frontier era. Wool combs arranged the fibers, separating the undercoat from outercoat and teasing the wool before carding by disentangling, cleaning and intermixing fibers. Sheep were among the early domesticated animals brought to Kentucky. Home production of wool increased during the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 due to trade embargos. Free and enslaved women prepared and spun the wool into a usable yarn. They used the yarn for knitting, or it was taken to a professional weaver (free or enslaved person) who turned it into cloth. Wool was often woven with cotton or hemp in early Kentucky textiles. Approximately 4/12 lbs. of spun wool were needed to make a single blanket. Wool cloth was also sewn into clothing by women.