Experimental stockings
date: label: Date made
content: ca 1937
label: Date made
content: 1937
name: label: maker
content: Union Hosiery Co.
notes: label: Description
content: In 1928, the E. I. DuPont de Nemours Co. hired Wallace Carothers Ph. to conduct pure research in any area of chemistry he chose. His interest was in the construction of long chain polymers, similar to those found in nature. There was no product in mind when he and his team began their work, they simply wanted to learn as much about large molecules as possible. The work done by Carothers and his team lead to the discovery of polyesters and polyamides. DuPont went with the polyamides, and nylon was born. It was the first fiber produced entirely in the laboratory, and was introduced to the public in the form of women's stockings at the 1939 World's Fair. Nylon stockings went on sale May 15, 1940, and were a smashing success. Prior to the production of nylon stockings, American women wore stockings made of silk or rayon. By 1942, nylon stockings were taking twenty percent of the stocking market. With U.S. entry into World War Two, nylon was declared a defense material and withdrawn from the civilian market. Nylon's most famous use during the war was as a replacement for silk in parachutes. However, it was also used in ropes, netting, tire cord, and dozens of other items. So many uses were found for nylon that some referred to it as the "fiber that won the war." When the war ended, nylon stockings were brought back and quickly replaced silk and rayon in the stocking market.
label: Description
content: This is the first pair of experimental nylon stockings made by Union Hosiery Company for Du Pont in 1937. The leg of the stocking is nylon, the upper welt, toe, and heel are silk, and cotton is found in the seam. The nylon section of the stocking would not take the silk dye, and dyed to black instead of brown.
place: label: Place Made
content: United States
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Textiles
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content: Clothing & Accessories
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content: Industry & Manufacturing
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content: Science & Mathematics
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content: National Treasures exhibit
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content: Textiles
publisher: label: Related Publication
content: Kendrick, Kathleen M. and Peter C. Liebhold. Smithsonian Treasures of American History
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of E. I DuPont deNemours & Co.
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TE.T12049
label: accession number
content: 227591
label: catalog number
content: T12049
objectType: label: Object Name
content: stockings, pair of
label: Object Type
content: Stockings
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: nylon (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: silk (welt, heel, toe material)
label: Physical Description
content: cotton (seam material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 33 in; 83.82 cm