CONCORD, NH--The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded $126,710 to the New Hampshire Historical Society in support of a project to catalog and make digital images of its historic textile collection. Once complete, this information will be accessible through the Society's online collections catalog. The project will provide a better understanding of and appreciation for the central role textiles played in the economy, in regional identity and family life.

The study of textiles offers an important window to New Hampshire life.  At the turn of the 20th century New Hampshire was the home of the largest textile production facility in the United States, the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company, employing more than 17,000 workers in its heyday. The Society's collection includes fabric sample books from the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company and other prominent New Hampshire textile manufacturers. The collection also includes samplers, banners, domestic textiles such as bedspreads and curtains, as well as home and industrial production samples. Among its most prized textiles are two among a handful of surviving Revolutionary War regimental battle flags.The flags were captured by the British at Fort Anne in New York in 1777, and returned to New Hampshire in 1913.

 

"Our grants are highly competitive. The Institute of Museum and Library Services enlists hundreds of library and museum professionals throughout the United States to review grant applications and make recommendations on projects most worthy of funding," said IMLS Director Susan H. Hildreth. "Receiving a grant from IMLS is significant achievement, and we congratulate the New Hampshire Historical Society for being among the 2014 IMLS museum grantees."

IMLS museum grants support a wide variety of projects that create learning experiences, strengthen community communities, care for collections and provide broad public access.  
 

"This project will allow the Society to share a wide variety of information about our textile collections. It makes images and descriptions of these objects accessible online to our members, scholars, educators, and the public. We can engage and inspire people with an interest in the textiles, while reducing the physical handling of the pieces to keep them safe," Bill Dunlap, the Society's president, said.
 

A complete list of museum recipients is available on the IMLS website at imls.gov/2014MuseumList. For information about IMLS museum grant programs, see: imls.gov/applicants/available_grants.aspx.

About the Institute of Museum and Library Services

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's123,000 libraries and 35,000 museums. Our mission is to inspire libraries and museums to advance innovation, lifelong learning, and cultural and civic engagement. Our grant making, policy development, and research help libraries and museums deliver valuable services that make it possible for communities and individuals to thrive. To learn more, visit imls.gov

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Rug
Helen Albee (1864-1939)
Tamworth, New Hampshire
1898-1916, Wool
Gift of Ellen Eppelsheimer
 
Reacting against the perceived negative effects of industrialization, during the early 20th century Helen Albee and other women established summer communities in New Hampshire where they revived traditional American crafts such as sewing and rug weaving as home industries.