Down the Calico Trail

My personal blog is named Calico Trails: “Calico” to honor our pioneer women and “Trails” to capture the flavor of the pioneer and cowboy era. So, of course I wanted to know more about the origin of calico.

Many of you are probably familiar with the fact that pioneer women preferred calico to make dresses, curtains, quilts, and shirts for their menfolk. But where did the name calico come from? And why was it so popular with the pioneers?

Calico is a coarse brightly printed cotton fabric generally printed with two-color patterns. The cloth is usually woven in the gray (natural) color, then bleached, dyed, and printed. The background color, if any is desired, is dyed into the cloth, then the design pattern is stamped on with wooden blocks in different colors, or in a more sophisticated method, using a revolving cylinder where the design has been cut. How often the pattern repeats itself on a piece of cloth depends on the diameter of the wooden block or cylinder. The intricate carving below is of a wooden block used to stamp cloth in the 1900s in India. The detail in the stamp is stunning in and of itself.

Photo Credit: Hubertl, Wikimedia Commons, CC-BY-SA 3.0 

History says that calico originated as a fine weave in Kozhikode, also called Calicut, in southwestern India. Europe saw the earliest imports of calicoes during the Renaissance, and later Europeand and American textile mills began manufacturing their own versions of the hardy material.

Drawing for block-printed fabric Tulip and Willow
Design 1873 by William Morris. Public Domain

Blue sprigged Calico Available
from Recollections

Calico fabrics range from fairly fine and sheer to coarse, stronger textures that would have been the preferred choice for pioneers. The sturdiness helped the cloth to hold up to long, hard wear, something that was sorely needed when money was hard to come by, not to mention the fact it might be hundreds of miles to the nearest store that might carry a few bolts of cloth. But many young ladies also coveted the soft, fine textured calico (sometimes called muslin and/or muslin gauze) for a special dress to draw the eye of some rugged cowboy at the next box social.

The terminology became a bit muddied when the cloth crossed the pond to America. In the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, the term calico generally refers to the simple, cheap weave of the fabric in white or off-white unbleached cotton. In other words, the cloth itself.

In America, the term became synonymous with the small, all-over floral design printed on the fabric. To the right is an example of blue sprigged calico available from a company called Recollections in Hawks, MI. I haven't actually ordered anything from them, but their styles are lovely and look very authentic to the time periods portrayed. The Industrial Revolution and mass production of the cloth contributed to its popularity among pioneer women.

Red Calico dress, also available

from Recollections

Here's part of Recollections description of the Red Calico dress on the left: A lovely cotton calico day dress for an afternoon stroll or picnic with friends. Delightful dress has high collar to frame the face and our classic flattering "V" cut. Dress has long leg-o-mutton sleeves and full skirt (about 130" at hem) with pockets. Your choice of skirt length: boot length 35" or floor length 40". Front button closure. In a variety of calico prints. Designed and made proudly by Recollections in America!

Girl's Calico dress from Recollections

Lovely, isn't it?

And simply for the adorable factor, here's a girl’s Calico dress, also made by Recollections. Now, how cute is that?

I feel the sudden need for a calico dress! How about you? 

Pam Hillman was born and raised on a dairy farm in Mississippi and spent her teenage years perched on the seat of a tractor raking hay. In those days, her daddy couldn’t afford two cab tractors with air conditioning and a radio, so Pam drove the Allis Chalmers 110. Even when her daddy asked her if she wanted to bale hay, she told him she didn’t mind raking. Raking hay doesn’t take much thought so Pam spent her time working on her tan and making up stories in her head. Now, that’s the kind of life every girl should dream of! Claiming Mariah is her second novel. www.pamhillman.com

WHY ARE THERE NO NEW CARS?

ANNE GREENE here. I’m in the last week of a deadline for my World WarII novel, Angel With Steel Wings, so this will be shorter than usual.

In my research for this book I’ve discovered so many fascinating things that it is my joy to share a few of them with you today.

For instance, did you know a wartime edition of American Woman’s Cook Book contained revised recipes that gave advice on dealing with food shortages?

And, According to Life Magazine, April 20, 1942, Uncle Sam took on the role of fashion designer. The government put tough restrictions on yard goods for women and girls. They restricted the length of hems and belts to two inches, and they eliminated cuffs on sleeves.

Do you know why Americans collected old tires, old rubber raincoats, garden hoses, and bathing caps? Because the Japanese had seized the plantations in the Dutch East Indies that produced ninety percent of America’s raw rubber. The government confiscated all automobile tires in excess of five per driver.

There was also a huge need for steel. So the government unearthed auto graveyards, tore up abandoned railroad tracks and bridges, but still needed an additional 6,000,000 tons. They asked the American people to put every unused item containing steel in collection bins. American did not have enough steel to provide weapons for her solders. They reported that even one shovel would make four hand grenades.

How would you have liked to drive back in the days of the war? The government set the national speed limit at 35 miles per hour to conserve rubber and gasoline. Warner Brothers’ cartoons had Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny exhorting the audience to Keep it under 40!

January 1, 1942 as former auto plants switched to producing military vehicles, new car production was banned.

For those on the home front, rationing was one of their contributions to the war effort. Everyone was involved.                                  

Each person in a household received a ration book, including babies and small children who qualified for canned milk not available to others.   

March, 1942, dog food could no longer be sold in tin cans, so manufacturers switched to dehydrated versions. In April, to purchase a new toothpaste tube, a person had to turn in the old one. All sales of sugar ended in April-but resumed in May with a ration of one-half pound per person per week. In November coffee joined the commodities rationed at one pound every five weeks.

By the end of 1942, typewriters, gasoline, bicycles, footwear, silk, nylon, fuel oil, stoves, meat, lard, shortening, oils, cheese, butter, margarine, processed foods, dried fruits, firewood, coal, jams, and jellies all had also become rationed.

 The ration coupon book became the second most important book in the house. The Bible remained the first. To get through the tough times, people turned to God. Everyone had a loved one fighting overseas.

So, how would you have liked living through that war against tyranny and murder? Leave a comment for a chance to win one of my books. Be sure to leave your email, so I can notify you if you win.