The Sewing Machine

Sewing began when our ancestors lived in caves, going back to the beginning of human society. In all ages, people sewed whatever they made by hand stitching. But, by the end of the 18th century, the first ideas for sewing machines began to emerge. All over the world, men, women and children spent many hours sewing by hand for themselves, their family, or as a trade. Elias Howe realized that a machine would not have to be like hand stitching, but make a new kind of stitch. All over the world, others were working on similar ideas. When one French inventor managed to get as far as setting up a factory with 8 machines, the tailors of Paris banded together to smash up the machines, because they feared progress would put them out of business. A second factory was also attacked. Ultimately, some of the greatest contributions were in public domain -- abandoned by the inventors. Elias Howe actually sued Singer and other manufacturers, but Singer refused to settle. The "sewing machine war" ultimately had Elias Howe the winner, publicly acclaimed the inventor of the sewing machine, but the legal battles raged on! By the end of the 19th century, there were 125 companies making sewing machines. Now, even adapting them to the computer age is moving the sewing machine into an era of unlimited capability! This book is absolutely fascinating for kids and adults! Highly recommended!