19th Century Linen Tags

Since today is Presidents Day and tomorrow is George Washington's birthday, I thought I'd share this interesting piece of ephemera. It's a tag that was sewn onto a bolt of cloth sometime between 1846 and the Civil War. One can still see where the corners were sewn to the fabric. This piece is a fine example for explaining the nature of my collection of antique ephemera. Certainly this tag was never meant to be saved, and yet, perhaps out of a sense of patriotism, it was. Would you ever consider saving the tags from the clothes or accessories you buy? Maybe your would if they were beautifully designed.

Incidentally, I looked up Washington Mills and was heartened to discover that the original buildings still exist and are now a stylish apartment complex.

And now I will make a segue from the Washington Mills to my collection of other linen tags. Remember that in the early part of the 19th century, Americans especially desired cloth from Britain, which was exporting both fabric and fashion to the United States. With the exception of the first Swiss tag, I think all the other linen tags are from English and Irish exports.

With the exception of the last tag, these are all approximately 2" x 3". Below are larger tags, brightly gilded.

6.875" wide

9" wide

Have you seen any labels lately that you'd want to save for future generations?

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