Today's Quilter - UK (2020-03)

TEXTILE HISTORY l fe e d sa c k s

T

hegenericterm‘feedsacks’is usedto

describethe(mostly)cottonbagsthat

weremadetoholda rangeof drygoods,

suchasseeds,fertiliser,flourandsugar,and

notjustanimalfeedasthenamesuggests.Mass

productionof thesacksstartedinthemid-1800s

whentheinventionof thelock-stitchsewing

machinemadeit possibletoconstructbagsthat

werestrongenoughtoholdheavyproduce.Priorto

this,goodswerestoredandtransportedinbarrels,

boxesandtins,whichwerenotonlyheavierthan

fabric sacks but also much bulkier when empty.

Bagsofinspiration

Althoughfabricsacksareusedinotherpartsof the

world,suchasricebagsinAsiaforexample,print-

fabricbagsareuniquetoNorthAmerica.Author

LinzeeKullMcCrayfirstcameacrossAmerican

feed-sacksaround 10 yearsago.Herquiltguildin

Iowahosteda talkbyMichaelZahs,a localfeed-

sack collector, who showed them someintriguing

examples.“I’dneverheardof them,”Linzee

confesses,“butI wascompletelyblownaway.”

Withherinterestpiqued,Linzeestartedto

research, write and blog about the bags. She

“Assoonas womenhadfabricthey

regardedas beingforfree,theyrepurposed

it to make all manner of items”

says,“Oneblogpostattractedover 200

commentsandI realisedI wasn’tthe

onlyonewhofoundthe feed-sack story

a fascinatingtale.”

A majorattractionforLinzeewasthat

feedsackslargelytella storyof women’s

socialhistory.Assoonaswomenhad

fabricthattheyregardedasbeingfor

free,theyfrugallyrepurposedit to

makeallmannerof householditems.

Manufacturerssoonlatchedontothis

andbeganto‘addvalue’totheirbagsso

theirproductswouldbechosenovera

competitor’s.“It’sveryclearthatfeed

sackswerenotaimedat men,”Linzee

says.“Womenmightnothavehadthepay

cheque,butI lovedthatmanufacturers

realisedtheydidhavea sayinhowthefamily’s

moneywasspent– intheUS,it’spossiblyone

of theearliestexamplesof marketing specifically

directedat women.”

Linzeetellsus,“Ireallywantedtogivethese

womentheirduebysharingtheirstorywithas

manypeopleaspossible,whichwasthemain

sparkforwritingmybook.”(Seepage 47 for

detailsaboutLinzee’sbookFeedSacks.)

Havingconductedmanyinterviews,Linzee

wasalsoawarethata lotof thewomenwhocan

rememberusingfeedsacksarenowelderly,soshe

waskeentocaptureasmany of their memories as

soon as possible.

Above,A farm

girlwearinga

dressmadefrom

feed-sackfabric;

Below,A printed

feedsackforPurina

Turkey Chow

Left,Detailofa doublewedding-ringquilt

withringsfeaturingfeed-sackandotherprints;

Above,ThePercyKentBagCompanyhighlighted

theembroiderypatternsprintedonitsbagsto

themillingindustry,pointingoutthatthiswould

givetheirproductsextrasales appeal. (From the

collection of Gloria Hall)

Photography: Images from

Feed Sacks

by Linzee Kull McCray