Hagley Museum and Library has added a significant collection
of sewing machine trade journals to its
Digital Archives. Seventeen volumes of the
Sewing Machine Times, spanning the years 1891 to 1911, have been digitized and uploaded. As the curators explain:
This period represents a robust time in the sewing machine industry and the journals offer a window into the work done by manufacturers, salesmen, and related experts during that time. The journal was published bi-weekly and the articles offer news about production, patent work, and
innovations in the sewing machine trade when changes were fast and furious due to the competitive nature of the companies producing machines and the high demand for sewing products. In addition, the journals provide historians a look into how people marketed and sold machines, and how those who were buying the machines interacted with them. The multitude of information in each issue truly represents the scope and impact American-made sewing machines had in the United States and eventually around the world.
Pages of each issue are provided as searchable PDF files.
