Conservation yarn samples, World War I wool substitute
date: label: date made
content: 1918
name: label: maker
content: S. B. & B. W. Fleisher, Inc.
notes: label: Description
content: A plain cardboard box containing15 balls of light blue knitting yarn made and marketed by S.B. & B.W. Fleisher, Inc. of Eighth and Chestnut Sts., Philadelphia, PA in response to the US government's call to conserve wool and cotton for military purposes during the First World War. This yarn is a "worsted yarn substitute containing neither cotton nor wool, which complies with all Government regulations; made of silk and mohair. Color: Robin's egg blue." A letter in the accession file mentions that this yarn had not yet ben wrapped in the new paper labels with the Conservation yarn title when the war ended and the regulations were terminated, but that the museum should be sure to mark the yarns as Conservation yarns in any display. Finding substitutes for wool and cotton, so important to military preparedness, was a subject of importance for all nations during global wars, as supply chains were affected by alliances and shipping difficulties.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Pennsylvania
topic: label: Subject
content: World War I
label: related event
content: World War I
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Textiles
label: See more items in
content: Textiles
label: See more items in
content: Textiles
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of S .B. & B. W. Fleisher, Inc.
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TE.T04075.000
label: catalog number
content: T04075.000
label: catalog number
content: ?004075.000
label: accession number
content: 63045
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Knitting Sample
label: Object Name
content: yarn samples
label: Object Name
content: box of yarn balls
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: mohair, silk (overall material)