Harris Tweed Industry - Historical and Current - 3 Minute Read
Harris Tweed dates from the 19th Century and has its origins in the Amhuinnsuidhe Estate, Harris. The estate was owned by the Earl and Countess of Dunmore who, following the devastation of a potato famine in the 1840's, encouraged local crofters to diversify and produce a durable woollen cloth, made from the wool-clip of indigenous sheep, that could be developed into a local, sustainable industry.
Originally the tweed, known in gaelic as the clo mor (great, or big cloth) was woven by the islanders for their own use. However, staff on the Amhuinnsuidhe sporting estate were also clothed in what became known as Harris Tweed, and visiting aristocratic guests created a growing market for the product.
By 1910, with the tweed in demand and its reputation growing, the Harris Tweed Association was formed to protect the industry from imitators, and the cloth gained the Sovereign's Orb trademark. The Orb symbol defined Harris Tweed as "hand-spun, hand-woven and dyed by the crofters and cottars in the Outer Hebrides". Machine spinning of the wool and vat dyeing have since replaced hand methods and only weaving is now done by loom in the home under the governance of the Harris Tweed Authority which was established by an Act of Parliament in 1993.
Harris Tweed is the only fabric that has its own legislation, and the making of the tweed is also unique with its textures and colours inspired by the Hebridean landscape. When it was first woven by island women it was a prickly, heavy but hard-wearing clo mor made from wool which had been dyed in various infusions of bark, flowers, heather, scrub and lichen to produce the muted natural colours of the landscape that was around them.
Production methods have changed since these early cottage-industry, labour intensive beginnings. Nowadays, a Tweed mill buys the raw virgin wool and washes, dyes and spins it ready for delivery to the weavers with instructions for the specific pattern required. All genuine Harris Tweed is hand-woven on treadle looms by weavers in their homes on crofts around the island. Older weavers use traditional Hattersley looms, which produce a single-width 30-inch (75cm) wide fabric, the younger weave with more modern Bonas-Griffiths looms which were introduced to the island in 1995 to weave double-width fabric.
The woven tweed, in lengths of about 85 yards (78 mtrs), is collected from the crofts and returned to the mills. After the finishing process is completed at the mill, the tweed is checked by inspectors, and if they are satisfied, the length is stamped with the Orb trademark which establishes the authenticity of the tweed. Each finished product also carries a number which can be traced back to the weaver who produced the cloth. The finished tweed comes in three weights - standard, light and bantam/feather - which makes for a very versatile product.
Although it had its origins in Harris it is Stornoway which emerged as the centre of the Harris Tweed industry with the bulk of the cloth being woven by Lewis crofters who supplied the mills in Stornoway with their product. The first mills were built in the early 1900's, and by 1935 there were more four mills in Stornoway and two in Harris. The industry peaked in the 1960's when a total of 7.6 million metres of cloth was produced, with 66% of that being exported, much of it to the USA. At that time there were six mills in Stornoway with several tweed producers located around the town. There were over 750 millworkers, and 1,200 weavers employed in the industry; 20% of those employed on the island in the 1960's worked in the industry. By the 1980's decline had set in and around 5 million metres of cloth was being produced by about 600 weavers; but then sales diminished to a fraction of peak production.
With the arrival of cheaper man-made materials from overseas the Harris Tweed industry declined, as did other textile industries in Europe. The industry did not evolve with the times, mills closed, and the number of weavers decreased to little more than a hundred.
Some mills re-opened on the west side of the island, and in 2007 Harris Tweed Hebrides was founded and operates one of these mills, employing over 40 staff. It has rejuvenated, refocused and repositioned the brand; at the 2009 and 2011 Scottish Fashion Awards it was named the textile brand of the year. The lighter weights combined with a new range of colours have made tweed a favourite material with top designers in Rome, Paris, London and New York. Cloth weights have halved since clo mor production, the material is softer and is now seen on the world's catwalks in vibrant colours.
Harris Tweed Hebrides has taken the fabric into the front-line of 21st Century fashion and design; it accounts for more than 90% of current Harris Tweed production, exporting the material to 85 countries, and it launched a cosmopolitan makeover using international models as brand ambassadors. There are two other smaller island mills in production, The Carloway Mill, and Kenneth Mackenzie Ltd.
Harris Tweed dates from the 19th Century and has its origins in the Amhuinnsuidhe Estate, Harris. The estate was owned by the Earl and Countess of Dunmore who, following the devastation of a potato famine in the 1840's, encouraged local crofters to diversify and produce a durable woollen cloth, made from the wool-clip of indigenous sheep, that could be developed into a local, sustainable industry.
Originally the tweed, known in gaelic as the clo mor (great, or big cloth) was woven by the islanders for their own use. However, staff on the Amhuinnsuidhe sporting estate were also clothed in what became known as Harris Tweed, and visiting aristocratic guests created a growing market for the product.
By 1910, with the tweed in demand and its reputation growing, the Harris Tweed Association was formed to protect the industry from imitators, and the cloth gained the Sovereign's Orb trademark. The Orb symbol defined Harris Tweed as "hand-spun, hand-woven and dyed by the crofters and cottars in the Outer Hebrides". Machine spinning of the wool and vat dyeing have since replaced hand methods and only weaving is now done by loom in the home under the governance of the Harris Tweed Authority which was established by an Act of Parliament in 1993.
Harris Tweed is the only fabric that has its own legislation, and the making of the tweed is also unique with its textures and colours inspired by the Hebridean landscape. When it was first woven by island women it was a prickly, heavy but hard-wearing clo mor made from wool which had been dyed in various infusions of bark, flowers, heather, scrub and lichen to produce the muted natural colours of the landscape that was around them.
Production methods have changed since these early cottage-industry, labour intensive beginnings. Nowadays, a Tweed mill buys the raw virgin wool and washes, dyes and spins it ready for delivery to the weavers with instructions for the specific pattern required. All genuine Harris Tweed is hand-woven on treadle looms by weavers in their homes on crofts around the island. Older weavers use traditional Hattersley looms, which produce a single-width 30-inch (75cm) wide fabric, the younger weave with more modern Bonas-Griffiths looms which were introduced to the island in 1995 to weave double-width fabric.
The woven tweed, in lengths of about 85 yards (78 mtrs), is collected from the crofts and returned to the mills. After the finishing process is completed at the mill, the tweed is checked by inspectors, and if they are satisfied, the length is stamped with the Orb trademark which establishes the authenticity of the tweed. Each finished product also carries a number which can be traced back to the weaver who produced the cloth. The finished tweed comes in three weights - standard, light and bantam/feather - which makes for a very versatile product.
Although it had its origins in Harris it is Stornoway which emerged as the centre of the Harris Tweed industry with the bulk of the cloth being woven by Lewis crofters who supplied the mills in Stornoway with their product. The first mills were built in the early 1900's, and by 1935 there were more four mills in Stornoway and two in Harris. The industry peaked in the 1960's when a total of 7.6 million metres of cloth was produced, with 66% of that being exported, much of it to the USA. At that time there were six mills in Stornoway with several tweed producers located around the town. There were over 750 millworkers, and 1,200 weavers employed in the industry; 20% of those employed on the island in the 1960's worked in the industry. By the 1980's decline had set in and around 5 million metres of cloth was being produced by about 600 weavers; but then sales diminished to a fraction of peak production.
With the arrival of cheaper man-made materials from overseas the Harris Tweed industry declined, as did other textile industries in Europe. The industry did not evolve with the times, mills closed, and the number of weavers decreased to little more than a hundred.
Some mills re-opened on the west side of the island, and in 2007 Harris Tweed Hebrides was founded and operates one of these mills, employing over 40 staff. It has rejuvenated, refocused and repositioned the brand; at the 2009 and 2011 Scottish Fashion Awards it was named the textile brand of the year. The lighter weights combined with a new range of colours have made tweed a favourite material with top designers in Rome, Paris, London and New York. Cloth weights have halved since clo mor production, the material is softer and is now seen on the world's catwalks in vibrant colours.
Harris Tweed Hebrides has taken the fabric into the front-line of 21st Century fashion and design; it accounts for more than 90% of current Harris Tweed production, exporting the material to 85 countries, and it launched a cosmopolitan makeover using international models as brand ambassadors. There are two other smaller island mills in production, The Carloway Mill, and Kenneth Mackenzie Ltd.