Sewing Machine and the Civil War

[colejones]

Hello,

A friend of mine is working on a graduate paper about the role of the sewing machine in the Union war effort, and I told her that I would ask this learned group if anyone was aware of any statistics on percentages of uniforms and accoutrements that were made, at least in part, on a sewing machine during the war. She is aware that this varies depending on the arsenal, but can't seem to find any hard numbers. Any help would be much appreciated.

Best,

T.C. Jones

[Uncle Pig]

Re: Sewing Machine and the Civil War

You may want to mention to her that it was not just the availability of sewing machines that controled their use but the availability of high quality thread. Once the south ran out it was very difficult to import more to supply the machines they had.

[VA-Patriot'61]

Re: Sewing Machine and the Civil War

Mark,
I believe Mr. Jones made it clear that the paper is on the Union War effort and not the Souths. High quality thread wouldnt be a factor in the North as much as it may have been in the South.

Mr. Jones,
I cannot offer any insight or direct guidance on sources of information but if she was able to track records of the major arsenals in the Union that may aid in pinpointing certain details. Also I'd suggest maybe asking CJ Daley if he had any knowledge on the subject of sewing machines in use for the Union War effort.

Cheers and good luck with the research!