Hello everybody and welcome back to another edition of Global History Hub! I'll be your host, Mr. Nations, your tour guide to this massive world we all call home! In today's weekly post, we'll be talking about the history of the sewing machine, one of the most important inventions created during the fascinating Industrial Revolution. Well, what are we waiting for? Let's dive straight into it!
Sewing has a history that goes as far back as society itself. It wasn't until the population grew quickly and the population expanded that we needed a machine that automated this task, and thus the sewing machine was born. One of the first prototypes was invented by Charles Fredrick Wiesenthal, a German-born engineer working in England was awarded the first British patent for a mechanical device to aid the art of sewing, in 1755. His invention consisted of a double-pointed needle with an eye at one end.
Several other sewing machines were invented, some were for other materials such as leather and canvas, others utilized a different stitch to try and speed up the process. In 1804, a sewing machine was built that had the ability to embroider. It was a revolutionary device and many would make similar devices to cash in on the fervor.
Soon, the market for sewing machines began to expand as consumers realized the potential behind these devices. Many began to mass-produce them, and they exploded in popularity. Today, sewing machines are not as popular as they once were, with the majority of sewing machines being sold to manufacturers creating huge amounts of clothing in short amounts of time. Vintage machines are very common, with many able to be found in thrift stores and antique stores, but the majority of these do not work. Despite this, sewing machines offer a cheap and easy way to both make clothing and a livelihood.
Vintage sewing machine:
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