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Willcox & Gibbs Sewing Machine Company (Manufacturer)

A hand-operated sewing machine manufactured by Willcox & Gibbs of New York, USA. It was acquired from T. & R. G. Grace, corn millers, maltsters and agricultural merchants of Tring, Hertfordshire. The firm was once connected with weaving.
Invented in the early 19th century, the sewing machine sped up the process of making clothes both domestically and commercially. Within the home, it reduced the amount of time women spent tailoring clothes for their families, enabling them to craft more garments for sale. Due to the sewing machine, the clothing industry flourished, with different fashions becoming available for the middle classes. However, workers did not see an increase in wages and they suffered in dreadful working conditions. The demand for better wages formed an important arm of the suffragette movement.

MERL ‘Handwritten catalogue’ form – ‘SEWING MACHINE // 65/228 // Crafts – Textile – Clothing Sewing // T. & R. G. Grace // Forming of maltsers - once also concerned with weaving // Willcox & Gibbs Sewing Machine Co. New York [pencil drawing].’, MERL Miscellaneous Note - James Edward Allen Gibbs decided to start his own sewing machine company in the 1850s, determined to make a cheaper and more elegant machine than Singer. Gibbs lost much of his wealth in the American Civil War but his business partner, James Willcox, ensured the company’s survival. Their unique selling point was their machine’s single thread chain stitch. Henry Leland, who invented the Cadillac, worked for Willcox & Gibbs and claimed he learned many of his key skills there. [Added by Tim Jerrome for the Barnett Project, 2022]

New York