International Textiles Collection 1907-1943

Thomas Nelson, the first dean of North Carolina State University's School of Textiles (now College of Textiles) may be the creator of this collection, though provenance cannot be verified. Nelson was an internationally-known textile technologist and educator. Born in Preston, England in 1872, he came to the United States to work in mills in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Virginia, and taught at the Lowell Textile Institute in Lowell, Massachusetts before joining the faculty at North Carolina Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1901. Nelson became head of the textile department in 1906 and dean of the School of Textiles in 1925. He retired as dean in 1943, but continued to serve as professor on the faculty until 1949. The School of Textiles building was formally named Nelson Hall in honor of Thomas Nelson in 1954.

The International Textiles Collection contains domestic and foreign textile samples from the United States, England, France, and Switzerland dating from about 1907 to 1943. Among the samples are broadcloth, cottonade, crepe, dobby, gingham, jacquard, lace, leno, sateen, silk, tapestry, velvet, venetian, and voile. In addition to the fabric samples, the collection contains notes, notebooks, correspondence, and a news clipping, as well as both domestic and international reports on textile production, manufacturers, fabric weaving, and fabric costs. The mills, manufacturers, and locations mentioned include: Erwin Mills, Durham, North Carolina; Neuse River Mills, Raleigh, North Carolina; the Patterson Manufacturing Company, China Grove, North Carolina; Proximity Mills, Greensboro, North Carolina; Taftville, Connecticut; and Eagle and Phenix Mills, Columbus, Georgia.

This collection was found in the basement of North Carolina State University's Nelson Hall when renovation of the building took place in 1994. The collection was then transferred to NC State University Libraries' University Archives. In September 1995, the materials were transferred from the University Archives to the Visual Arts Center, Division of Student Affairs (now the Gregg Museum of Art and Design). In February 2016, NC State University Libraries' Special Collections received the materials as a transfer from the Gregg Museum.

It is believed that Thomas Nelson may be the creator of this collection based on the evidential content of the materials. The collection contains multiple correspondence either to or from Nelson, as well as a notebook bearing his name. Nelson also worked as an agent for several government agencies, and the collection contains multiple fabric samples pinned to government agency letterheads. Among those agencies represented are the Treasury Department's Bureau for the Analysis of Textile Fabrics Appraiser’s Office, and the US Tariff Commission. There is also stationery (envelopes and letterhead) that contain Thomas Nelson's name and his address at North Carolina State University's School of Textiles. In addition, the date range of the materials, 1907 to 1943, match the period of Nelson's life in which he was most active in his career. This encompasses his time working as a consultant for mills in North Carolina and elsewhere, and there are manuscript notes taken from multiple mills pertaining to productivity and weaving activities that may have been a result of his consultations.

This collection is arranged alphabetically.

The original alphabetical order of the creator was used when discernable. The materials were originally stored in wooden Macey Transfer Cases containing spine labels listing contents. The contents were removed from the original transfer cases by Gregg Museum staff and bagged together. The relationship was kept by assigning each case a number, writing that number on the inside of the case, and placing a slip of paper with the number into each bag of materials. Upon inspection, several bag numbers and case numbers did not clearly match, one bag was missing a number slip, and one box was not numbered. The bag contents were matched to what was believed to be their original transfer case based on the original folder titles and each case's spine label.

The processor arranged the cases alphabetically by spine label title and assigned sequential numbers. Some contents were loose within the bags, but most were foldered and labeled. To maintain original order and keep association of contents with their original transfer case, the new folder titles consist of the derived sequential transfer case number, the creator's case title and, when present, the creator's original folder labels.

The NC State University Libraries generally claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. Libraries staff are unable to advise on copyright and other legal matters; the user assumes full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Helpful resources for assessing copyright include Cornell Libraries' "Copyright Services: Copyright Term and the Public Domain" and copyright.gov. This collection may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information about identifiable living individuals, which may be protected under federal or state laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that there may be legal ramifications for disclosing this information.

The University Archives operates in accordance with the State Public Records Act, with unrestricted access to records not covered by state and federal statutes and regulations.

[Identification of item], International Textiles Collection, MC 00585, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC

• Thomas Nelson Papers (MC 00002)
• North Carolina State University, College of Textiles, Office of the Dean Records (UA 130.001)

Transfer from the Gregg Museum of Art and Design, 2016 (Accession 2016.0052).

Processed by: Jessica Serrao, 2017 March; machine-readable finding aid created by: Jessica Serrao, 2017 March.