Home Textile Tool Museum, Orwell, PA
By Cathy M. Koos
Nestled in the uplands on the border between New York and Pennsylvania lies the sleepy little village of Orwell, PA. At the top of the hill across from the Grange Hall we find the Home Textile Tool Museum. Founded in 1999 by Long Island antiques dealers Bill and Vicky Ralph, the museum is home to a vast array of textile tools, huge frame looms and more spinning wheels than you can shake a stick at.
While still on Long Island, a spinning wheel came into the shop and that one innocent addition to the shop changed the Ralph’s lives forever. Bill and Vicky eventually relocated to an 1820’s timber framed Federal-style home in the rural hamlet of Orwell in 1972.
Now the site of oil fracking operations, Orwell’s past was anchored in sheep and wool production.
With seven carding mills once in the area, it is estimated that at one time there was one large loom for every three families. So, it is not surprising that after the Ralphs moved in, they would find gifts of disassembled wheels and looms, fresh from someone’s attic, on their front porch.
By 1999, Bill, always handy with antique repairs, had repaired and adjusted over 650 spinning wheels. Bill soon expanded his repertoire to restoring antique looms and textile tools. Rutgers professor Michael Holcomb had purchased the old Grange building across the road where he housed a large collection of spinning wheels, and with an eye on a future museum, Bill expanded his workshop to make it more visitor friendly.
For one day in 1999, the Ralphs opened the museum and in the following year they hosted a full season of open Saturdays during the summer. Visitors came from all over the world. Open Saturdays featured numerous workshops and hands-on education. Recent workshops continue to include flax demonstrations, natural dyeing, blacksmithing, Shaker textiles, wool waulking, baskets, spinning and soap making. Bill passed on in 2001 and Vicky in 2002, but they left this treasure of a museum in the capable hands of the HTTM board.
I have always been interested in history and how regular folk went about everyday activities and few years back, I had the opportunity to visit the museum with my mom.
Last week, I had a chat with Pat Hilts, Curator and board member for the museum to see what is new. Pat was extremely excited about their latest acquisition of a Shaker wheel.
The Jane Hansen Reference Library is up and running and available on request. We talked about the future of the museum in this time of limited tourists. Pat told me they are members of the nonprofit Endless Mountain Heritage group and Pennsylvania’s Partners for the Arts. They enjoy volunteer support from the local guild, Wysock’s7 Cat’s Cradle. To expand interest, Pat will be offering a class on timber frame construction.
DETAILS: The museum is generally open Saturdays from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
The museum can be found on the web at www.hometextiletoolmuseum.org and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/hometextiletoolmuseum/ You can leave a message at 570-247-7175 or write them at 1819 Orwell Hill Road, Rome, PA 18837 or email at info@httm.org