Vigo County Historical Society

Historical Treasure Article

Historic Treasure of the Week - August 11, 1985
By Georgia Jones
Vigo County Historical Society

Carpet beater eased dirty job

The earliest floor coverings in America appear to have been the "Turkey carpets," imported from Europe to the colonies and used in wealthy homes after the first quarter of the 18th century.

The American carpet industry did not get underway until several protective tariffs were imposed on foreign imports in the 1820s. These laws increased the tax per yard on British textiles making American manufacture economically possible.

The invention of the steam-operated loom in 1839 revolutionized the industry making domestic carpets easily affordable.

But in rural districts, most floors were left bare and were frequently sanded. Fine white sand was swept into patterns with a broom.

Floors also were decorated with painted motifs on wide pine boards, painted canvas and rush or rag matting or hand-loomed rag carpets.

As more and more carpets were used in homes the problem of how to clean them became an everyday concern.

Today"s treasure, a wicker carpet beater, was one tool used. The beater, on display in the Guy Stantz Tool Room in the Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley,1411 S. Sixth St., is made of wicker in a scroll pattern The twisted wicker handle is 19 inches long and reinforced with wrapped wire.

Other carpet beaters made of wire with wood handles may be seen tin the Country Store in the museum.

Hullman and Co." Feb. 23, 1920, Illustrated Weekly Catalog advertises the wire carpet beaters as "made of No. 10 coppered wire."

Dorothy Gordon Kylander in her book, "Recollections of a Little Hoosier Girl," remembers that "carpeted rooms had either wall to wall carpeting with several layers of newspaper beneath to make it softer, wear longer and to discourage moths, or area rugs. The rugs were usually 9 feet by 12 feet in size, thus leaving a wide margin of bare floor on all sides. The carpets were swept with a broom, and the painted floor dusted with a dust mop, every day, A real cloud of dust was stirred up! Trade names were Brussels Carpets, Axminister Rugs and O"Cedar mops.

"Every spring, the rugs had to be carried out and hung on the clothesline and 'beat and beat' until no more dust could be beaten out. The carpets were tacked to the floor, so they didn't get the annual beating. When the time came that the sweeping dust became unbearable, the tacks were removed, the carpet taken out and beaten and retacked."

In the book, "Lost and Found," Robert Paul Smith states that aside from all the release from tension provided when using a carper beater, there was one more virtue to a carpet beater. You didn't have to clean it.

Other methods used to clean carpets included:

Cleaning with snow by placing the carpet outside for one-half hour to solidify any grease particles. Then place the carpet on the snow and walk or jump back and forth over the entire area. Shake the rug out and the rug is clean. To use this process certain conditions must be met. The temperature must be well below freezing and there should be at least four inches of clean, dry, fresh, powdery snow on the ground.

Scatter grated raw potatoes over the carpet and brush vigorously with a new
broom. The carpet should be beaten thoroughly before putting down the potatoes and again after the job is finished.

T o sweep a carpet on the floor, using a straw broom sprinkle a little water on the carpet first to keep the dust down and help the broom sweep clean. If sweeping a rag carpet with a broom remember that "a severe digging with a stiff broom wears the warps and scrapes out the lint of the rags quite needlessly,"

The museum is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday through Friday. For more information, call 235 9717 during open hours.