In the course of compiling my Map of Textile Museums, I came across several websites with interesting textile history information but no actual bricks and mortar museum site, so I thought I would make this page to list them.
NEW: Interesting article about the Irish linen industry in Northern Ireland
CottonTown
Cottontown tells the story of a manufacturing process that started in isolated cottages on the wind and rain swept West Pennines and ended with derelict weaving sheds and the demolition of tall, soot blackened mill chimneys. In between was the boom time, when Cotton was King and Blackburn was the weaving capital of the world, when millionaire magnates lived in country mansions and the workers made the best of it in overcrowded, uncomfortable, unsanitary conditions.
The Textile Society – UK based website
The Fabric Museum – an online Fabric Museum
Knitting Together – the history of knitting in the East Midlands
Museum of Ancient Inventions – this has lots of links to textile related artifacts
Links relating to Welsh Woollen industry
Fascinating article about curating fashion exhibits in museums – the links included in the article are worth following too.
The sites below used to be on this page but the links to them are now broken, but I’ve left them here for reference as by googling you may be able to find them on the Way Back Machine.
Spinning The Web – an online history of the cotton industry around Manchester, UK
Ingenious – has links to lots of historical textile artifacts
Virtual Plastics Museum
Virtual Sewing Machines Museum
Colour Experience – run by Society of Dyers and Colourists and gives information on dyeing and the textile industry.
Hello,
A textile-related question here. About 25 years ago my husband picked up a little lavender sachet in a shop in York, near the Minster, made of cotton fabric with a silk-screened drawing of a boy chorister in robes on it – both front and back views. It seems to me that this type and style of print was available on a number of textile gift items in the 1970s, in England. Any idea what company produced these?
Thank you.
Hi there, this is a great list. Could I give a shout out to my own website? Thanks! 😉
Yes, of course! I’ll add your blog to my links.
great site, always on the hunt for historical work and good going..cannot seem to connect with email subscription?
Hi Linda, thanks for letting me know about the email subscription, it seems to have worked now; I changed the form recently so I’ll check I have it installed right….
Thanks!
You’re welcome!