Collection Guide
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Guide to the Collection of late 19th century sewing machine trade cards, advertisements, and catalogues.
M000088
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Collection Title: Collection of late 19th century sewing machine trade cards, advertisements, and catalogues.
Dates: 1871-1901
Identification: M000088
Physical Description: 0.25
Language of Materials:
English
Spanish;Castilian
Repository:
Sutro Library, California State Library
1630 Holloway Avenue
5th floor
San Francisco, CA, 94132-4030
URL: http://www.library.ca.gov/about/sutro_main.html
Email: sutro@library.ca.gov
Phone: 415-469-6100
Throughout the 19th century, trade cards were distributed by businesses to potential consumers to advertise and announce their
trade. Oftentimes, these ornate and easily-transportable items were collected and exchanged in social circles.
This collection demonstrates the significance of sewing machines in women's lives as well as the different marketing strategies
businesses used. Advertisers considered women's values, depicting a variety of social situations including women's work, courtship,
and the family. Advertisers also made the trade cards entertaining and interactive by including humor and novelty effects
such as hold-to-light and before-and-after images.
The remainder of the collection, mostly consisting of small catalogues, provides information on the capabilities of specific
machines and overall technical improvements as they occurred. The collection also contains a wide variety of printing techniques
and artistic styles. Some of the companies within this collection are Davis Sewing Machine Company, New Home Sewing Machine
Company, Singer Manufacturing Company, Standard Sewing Machine, and the White Sewing Machine Company.
Index created by Thai-Van Stanoff, student assistant, in Winter 2024.
Property rights reside with the repository. Any applicable literary rights would reside with the creators of the documents
or their heirs. To obtain permission to publish or reproduce, please email: sutro@library.ca.gov .
This collection is open for research. Please page materials three business days in advance of your visit by email: sutro@library.ca.gov
.
[Identification of item] Collection of late 19th century sewing machine trade cards, advertisements, and catalogues, 1871-1901,
M000088, Sutro Library, California State Library, San Francisco, Calif.
This collection is arranged into two series:
Series 1: Sewing machine trade cards, 1880-1901
Sub-series 1: "Domestic," "New Home," "Singer," and "White" trade cards, 1880-1901
Sub-series 2: Misc. trade cards, 1881-1888
Series 2: Booklets, catalogues, and periodicals, 1871-1884
This collection consists of approximately 196 pieces of advertising materials created and distributed by sewing machine companies
in the late 19th century. Advertisement trade cards make up the majority of the collection, but catalogues, periodicals, and
assorted novelty items are also included.