In my previous post, I talked about a shuttle that was a gift to me by my brother-in-law. I also shared it on my blog FaceBook page where Sharon Tabor shared some history of Boye shuttles. She was gracious enough to allow me to share the information that she had about them. The following is her comment on the FB post.
“The tipped curve was made by a former user. I have a complete set of Boye metal shuttles from 1915-1992. The first Boye shuttles were pinched in the middle. The shuttle you were gifted is from about 1920. The shape was changed after the 1917 patent and was made in 2 sizes 3″ and 3 1/2”
Pre-WWII, the shuttles were nickel or zinc plated brass. The one your brother-in-law gifted you is a brass shuttle with a zinc coating (it is dull) During WWII all metal was diverted to the war effort and hence the invention of celluloid ( an early but flammable plastic). The 3 1/2″ shuttles were discontinued in 1947.
Since I documented my Boye collection, I have found the 1917 shuttle I was missing. The last Boye shuttles made in the USA were only printed on one side and the back was blank.
Your shuttle is circa 1920-1923.
A great reference book is Tatting Shuttles of American Collectors by Heidi Nakayama” Sharon Tabor
Shuttle collection by Sharon Tabor
Thank you, Sharon, for the wonderful information and for allowing me to share it on my blog. Isn’t this a great collection of shuttles?
On a different note, I am still working on the pattern for the Isla Snowflake. I’m hoping to have it done in a few days.
Today is Tuesday, 2/22/22 or 22/2/22, depending on how it’s written in your part of the world. Either way, it is a palindrome, meaning it reads the same backward as it does forward. This type of ‘Twosday’ is so special that it won’t happen again for another 400 years. I’ve heard that a lot of people have chosen today to get married. I guess you’d never forget your anniversary!
I meant to post much earlier in the day today but have met with ‘two’ many issues that I didn’t expect, which put me way behind on everything I did plan to do. So I better get on it while it is still Tuesday, I mean ‘Twosday’.
My sweet brother-in-law remembered me when he found a tatting shuttle at a flea market recently and bought it for me.
Boye shuttle with whistle
You can see this was a well-used shuttle by how the finish is worn off. There is still enough left to see it is a Boye shuttle. It still has a variegated pink thread on the bobbin, which looks to be size 80.
I’m not sure how old the shuttle is but looks to be from before 1923. I have another metal Boye shuttle I compared it to. Notice in the center of the top shuttle it says “PAT APR.17.’23”. The center of the bottom shuttle, the one I was just given, says “PAT APL’D FOR”
Two Boye shuttles
The older one (bottom) is longer and the body is wider than the newer one. You can see that the top shuttle has the bobbin peeking out on both sides of the body, while the bottom one is as wide as the bobbin. The pick at the tip is different, also.
Different tips on the shuttles
The older one (right) has the tip curving up compared to the body instead of to the side like the newer one (left). All the metal Boye shuttles I’ve seen before have the pick curved to the side. Maybe this was a change before the patten went through?
One of the things that delayed me writing my post today was an event I attended. Newton, Kansas, the town that I used to live in is celebrating the sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary of its incorporation. They threw a party where the mayor gave a proclamation and had local organizations put on the entertainment for the evening in the form of local music groups and a dance troupe. I stopped to check it out and stayed longer than expected.
The City was selling souvenirs at the party in the form of t-shirts and wooden train whistles, of which I had to indulge. Trains have been a major part of Newton from the beginning, when it was the trailhead of the Chisholm Trail. The railroad basically cuts the town in half. If you spend any time in Newton, Kansas, even today, you understand the t-shirt.
Newton t-shirt and whistleWhistle and shuttles
I didn’t really need the wooden train whistle (or the t-shirts!) but, hey, it’s cute.
I’m still working on the pattern for the Isla snowflake. I think I’ve got the stitch count down where I’m happy with it. Now I have to start diagramming it, the most un-fun part of sharing my patterns. I’ve also realized I should document the pattern for the doily I have in the background, one I made in 2014. I think I would like to make it again. That makes two patterns to work on. There’s that two again.
“Today is the day to celebrate Newton! 150 years ago on February 22, 1872, Newton, ‘the wickedest city in the West” made up of businessmen, gamblers and cowboys with 27 saloons and the AT& SF railroad tracks running right through the middle of it all, was incorporated as a city.” Harvey County Historical Society
