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Post by brokennock on Feb 15, 2020 21:56:15 GMT -7
How early can we go with the blue, yellow, and red, "point" stripes on a white wool blanket? My feeling has been they are a post AWI thing, possible not even until post 1800. But, I would like to know.
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Post by spence on Feb 16, 2020 11:20:39 GMT -7
The colors on a blanket aren't related to the points. The point system was adopted by the French in mid-18th century, and related to the size of the blankets. They are 4-inch (whole point) and 2-inch (half point) marks on the edge of the blanket. I believe the point marks were usually black.
It is believed a fur trapper, Germain Maugenest, first suggested to Hudson Bay Company that point blankets be included in their trade goods in 1779.
The earliest record of the HBC ordering blankets with blue, yellow, red and green stripes was in 1798.
Hudson's Bay Company Archives in Winnipeg. This letter is on microfilm and it is located in HBCA Reel 28 - A5/4
London Correspondence: from Hudson's Bay House 18 January 1798 to: Thomas Empsom (Empsom owned a blanket factory in Witney, Oxfordshire) an order for Blanketting, Duffle and Point Blankets which concludes, "... plus 30 pair of 3 points to be striped with four colours red, blue, green, yellow) according to your judgement.”
Spence
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Post by brokennock on Feb 16, 2020 11:44:51 GMT -7
Thank you Spence. I kind of had the points and stripes being two different things in the back of my head but wasn't sure. If I get the blanket I'm looking at I will cut the stripes off and use the more square remainder as a match coat.
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