New England played a major role in American textile production in the early 1800s. Although American women had woven textiles in their homes for centuries, and Europe and India had been printing textiles for more than a century, America only established its first textile mills in the late 1700s and its first textile-printing companies in the 1820s.
Just as they do now, popular textile designs changed each season. One of the most popular designs in the 1830s and 1840s consisted of dyed stripes that either faded from one color to the next, or merely faded from one color to a lighter version of the same color (now referred to as ombre). Print designs commemorating important events, such as the election of President Andrew Jackson in 1829, even made their way into New England households. Other popular designs included realistic floral patterns, abstract geometric designs, and exotic subjects. Colors also had different periods of popularity. Drab and turkey red were popular ground colors for prints in the 1830s, while pink-on-pink prints, or double-pinks, were popular in the 1850s.
In the early years of American textile printing, printers often copied popular designs from Europe. After spending years in England learning the printing process, individuals like John Ward returned to America with books full of European fabric samples and began printing mills. John Ward’s mill, John Ward and Sons, in Barkhamsted, Connecticut, produced popular printed cottons from 1836 to 1857.
By the mid to late 19th century, the idea of teaching textile design took hold in America and schools began to offer training in the art of design. At the end of the 1800s, Candace Wheeler helped to Americanize textile design by using native flowers and taking inspiration from other cultures but creating them in versions that Americans would enjoy. She favored stronger, more intense colors, which she thought reflected the quality of American light. The Cheney Brothers of Manchester produced some of her designs on silks, while other companies created them on cotton.
To learn more about the history of the textile industry, visit the exhibition Making Connecticut and explore the resources of the Research Center at the Connecticut Historical Society, One Elizabeth Street, Hartford, CT 06105. For hours and more information go to http://www.chs.org/
