Hello all,
1. There is an intimation in Whiting that the bobbins of East Devon (Honiton bobbins) were all decorated in "Workshops" dedicated to that function. 2. Theses could possibly be associated with lace dealers or shops dealing in lace making needs; but not necessarily so. 3. My studies show that clearly a number of designs can be associated with one person or a workshop. When I was studying East Midland bobbins I had access to a set of census disks for the UK and managed to find a few names of bobbin makers that have not featured in Springett. I did this by searching under occupations. Since I started concentrating on the East Devon (Honiton) bobbins I have struggled to ascertain if these bobbins were indeed decorated by specialists in workshops as "rumored". It dawned on me rather late, that I should search the Census records for bobbin decoration, painting, design, even turning/making (or other innovative searches, that might reveal this sort of information) I no longer have access to these census disks, and though I have tried very hard to do similar searches on the free genealogical data bases, I have failed to be able to search for these occupations in Devon/Somerset/Dorset/Hampshire. Is there a possibility that any of you have these disks or access to them and could do the searches for me? Please. I know it is a big ask, and is a lot of work, but it is an unanswered question relating to these bobbins, for which their decoration is pretty well, the only distinctive feature of the bobbins. If you are able to help I would be delighted. Drop me a note if you want, before you get searching or else, solve the problem I am trying to answer, then tell me about what you find before you write it up for publication. (Please) :) Many thanks. Brian PS I found a bobbin with FIVE sets of spangles on it! You may have seen it too. - To unsubscribe send email to majord...@arachne.com containing the line: unsubscribe lace y...@address.here. For help, write to arachne.modera...@gmail.com. Photo site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacemaker/sets/
