Reed Maker

July 14

Carl Robert Keyes Daily Advert Update , , , , , , ,

What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago today?

Rivington’s New-York Gazetteer (July 14, 1774).

“At this critical and alarming juncture … set up the business of REED-MAKING.”

Nathaniel Pike testified that he wished to do his part to support the American cause in an advertisement in the July 14, 1774, edition of Rivington’s New-York Gazetteer.  He informed the public that he was “willing to assist in promoting manufacturers in America, (especially at this critical and alarming juncture)” and, accordingly, “lately set up the business of REED-MAKING.”  Eighteenth-century readers familiar with weaving knew that reeds were the “part of a loom consisting of a set of evenly spaced wires known as dents (originally slender pieces of reed or cane) fastened between two parallel horizontal bars used for separating, or determining the spacing between, the warp threads, and for beating the weft into place.”[1]  Pike pledged that “weavers and others, both in town and country, may be supplied with reeds of all kinds, as neat and good as any imported.”

Although Pike did not name the Boston Port Act or any of the other Coercive Acts passed by Parliament in retaliation for the Boston Tea Party, readers certainly understood the context for his reference to “this critical and alarming juncture.”  From New England to Georgia, colonizers discussed how to respond, many of them advocating for a new round of nonimportation agreements like the ones enacted in response to the Stamp Act and the duties imposed on certain goods in the Townshend Acts.  That meant that “domestic manufactures” or goods produced in the colonies would become important alternatives to imported goods.  Pike offered his own product made in the colonies, those reeds that matched imported ones in quality, yet his enterprise also facilitated greater production of textiles in the colonies.  Every stage of producing cloth took on greater significance in the face of boycotting fabrics imported from England, from farmers raising sheep for their wool to women participating in spinning bees that put their patriotism on display to consumers choosing and wearing homespun cloth out of allegiance to their political principles.  By supplying weavers with reeds for their looms, Pike served a vital role in protests against the abuses perpetrated by Parliament.  He expected that current events would help in marketing his product.

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[1] Oxford English Dictionary, II.11.a.

August 11

Carl Robert Keyes Daily Advert Update , , , , , , , , , ,

What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago today?

Pennsylvania Gazette (August 11, 1773).

“Weaver’s Reeds or Shuttles.”

Eighteenth-century readers would have recognized the image that adorned George Lechler’s advertisement in the August 11, 1773, edition of the Pennsylvania Gazette, even though it does not possess the same familiarity for modern readers.  Lechler described himself as a “WEAVER AND REED-MAKER.”  The image that ran across the top of the notice, a long narrow rectangle divided by vertical lines at close intervals, depicted a reed.  As described by the Oxford English Dictionary, a reed is “part of a loom consisting of a set of evenly spaced wires known as dents (originally slender pieces of reed or cane) fastened between two parallel horizontal bars used for separating, or determining the spacing between, the warp threads, and for beating the weft into place.”  A reed also aids in guiding a shuttle across the loom.  Though the woodcut likely looks like a geometric design to most readers today, colonizers easily recognized a piece of equipment used when weaving.

That image helped draw attention to the lively copy that constituted the remainder of the advertisement.  Lechler expressed some exasperation that he “F[OU]ND myself once more under the necessity to acquaint the Public where in Philadelphia I live, since there are persons who say that I am removed.”  Such stories, he asserted, were “entirely false, as I live in the same house where I have lived these 12 years past, and shall continue in it till I move into eternity.”  Lechler had no intention, now or ever, of moving to another location.  Furthermore, following his death, “there will be another Lechler, who will continue to live there, as the house is my own, and he will make work as good as his father.”  The weaver demonstrated pride in owning his house and workshop, as sign of success, as well as pride in his own abilities and pride in the skills of his son who would continue the family business.  Yet he did not consider it necessary to go into greater detail about the “Weaver’s Reeds or Shuttles” that he made, stating that “it is not necessary for me to praise my work, for the work itself will praise the master.”  Customers who needed reeds and shuttles, Lechler declared, “may depend on getting them as good of me, as in any part of the world,” whether imported or made in the colonies.

The weaver had “a parcel of good Reeds ready made …for sale” at his house on Market Street, “the third door above the sign of the Three Kings.”  He intended for the image of the reed and the slightly cantankerous advertisement to entice weavers to acquire equipment from him at the usual place rather than trust in idle gossip (or perhaps even deliberate attempts to undermine his share of the market) that he had moved to another location.  He also encouraged the public to think of his workshop as a family business that would continue after his death, promoting customer loyalty among those satisfied with the reeds they purchased from him.