Bolt end of white shirting, "American Cotton British Manufacture"; 1917
date: label: date made
content: 1917
notes: label: Description
content: Bolt end of bleached white shirting, Selvage width (29.75") by about 13" - Paper label: "American Consulate at Mombasa, B.E.A. Trade Opportunity No. 150 of July 28, 1917. Sample No. 4 - White shirting (cotton)". Stamped # 83881, probably the trade report #. One of a collection of many samples collected by US Consuls around the world between about 1898 and 1918 transferred to the US National Museum in the 1920s-30s. This sample, probably of Manchester, England manufacture, bears a paper label with an ornate design of crossed American and British flags, with an eagle, printed in brown, blue, black, and white, which says "American Cotton, British Manufacture" which represents the fact that certain American-made cotton fabrics, known as "Merekani" or "Amerikani", were highly desired in East Africa and Red Sea region, both for use and for trade with the interior for elephant tusks. There is another paper label, round, printed in several colors, with a design of flowers such as roses, peonies, daffodils. In small blue print on this label are the words: N.N.s No 146A Regd Copyright Engaged for Burmah". Blue stamps reading "No 2442" and "40 Yards" .Cloth feels sized and has foxing type stains throughout.
label: Description
content: Consular Collection.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United Kingdom
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Textiles
label: See more items in
content: American Textile Industry
label: See more items in
content: Consular Collection Textile Samples
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Transfer from the U.S. Dept. of Commerce
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: TE.67426.002
objectType: label: Object Name
content: bolt end
label: Object Name
content: fabric sample
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: cotton (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: plain weave; bleached (overall production method/technique)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 13 in x 30 in; 33.02 cm x 76.2 cm