It’s hard to imagine a world without carpet. We can’t! Have you ever wondered who came up with the idea for this fabulous floor covering? Here’s a brief history for you.
Carpet as we know it was first invented in Philadelphia in the late 18th century, about 20 years after colonists converged there to sign the Declaration of Independence. A man by the name of William Sprague created a large loom based on English innovations that produced 27-inch runners that were later sewn together to create the nation’s first carpet – an invention that really ‘floored’ people.
By the turn of the century, technology had advanced so much that folks could crank out carpets in just one day. Soon after, carpet manufacturers started sprouting up in New England.
But it was a man by the name of Erasmus Bigelow who turned the carpet industry upside down, reinventing the industry by introducing the world to the power loom in 1839. This not-so-little loom created such a boom in carpet sales that demands grew high and production tripled by 1850. The loom is now on permanent display at the Smithsonian. Bigelow loved carpet, and he continued to reinvent production methods by introducing the world to broadloom carpet 27 years later. Erasmus was the king of carpet in his day.
Growth in the industry continued over the years. In 1905, a company formed by the Shuttleworth brothers in Amsterdam, New York, introduced consumers to a new kind of carpet called Karnak Wilton. It took everyone by storm and caused a serious carpet craze. The Karnak Wilton carpet proved to be so popular that the Shuttleworths were forced to open another plant devoted entirely to creating the new favorite flooring.
New carpet manufacturers wanted in on the action and started forming businesses up and down the eastern seaboard. The state of Georgia became, and is still known as, the home of tufted carpeting thanks to a woman named Catherine Evans Whitener. She created the new genre of carpet after making a special bedspread for some friends who were getting married by using a running stitch to sew together heavy cotton yarns and unbleached muslin.
In a genius move, Whitener decided to every-so-gently clip the ends of the yarn, making it fancy and fluffy. She then washed the bedspread in hot water, causing the yarns to be held tight due to the shrinking fabric. Little did she know, her homemade bedspread would spawn an entire industry known as tufted carpeting and put Georgia on the map as the nation’s leader in carpeted flooring.
Now you know a little more about where carpet came from. And you definitely know who to call when you need it cleaned!