Name/Title
Great WheelEntry/Object ID
2017.01.20Description
Spinning wheel. Great wheel. Horizontal, spindle, painted red. Rectangular table rests on three splayed legs. Slanted wheel post fits through table. Drive wheel has ten spokes and a flat rim constructed in two sections. The metal drive wheel axle fits through the wheel post. The slanted spindle post, set into the table, holds the incomplete accelerating head. The threaded iron tensioning rod fits through the lower part of the spindle post and into the table. It is adjusted by an iron thumb screw on one side of the post and a threaded piece of metal on the other. Original red paint. Edges of table beveled.Use
Great wheels were used mostly for spinning wool, but sometimes also for cotton or linen.Context
Joan Whittaker Cummer, "A Book of Spinning Wheels" (Portsmouth, NH: Peter E. Randall, 1991), 36-37: "Thought to have been made in the United States probably during the early nineteenth century, this wheel is most remarkably heavy and has old original red paint." Wheel no. 13.Collection
American Textile History Museum CollectionMade/Created
Date made
circa 1800 - circa 1850Time Period
19th CenturyLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Primary Object Term
Wheel, SpinningNomenclature Sub-Class
Textile Manufacturing EquipmentNomenclature Class
Textileworking T&ENomenclature Category
Category 04: Tools & Equipment for MaterialsOther Names and Numbers
Other Numbers
Number Type
ATHMOther Number
1991.178.13Dimensions
Height
61-1/4 inDepth
15-1/2 inLength
51 inMaterial
Wood, Ferrous metal, Red paintLocation
Location
Exhibit Room
Thread City Exhibit, Bev York Room* Untyped Location
Main Museum BuildingCategory
ExhibitDate
April 11, 2026Condition
Overall Condition
Very GoodDate Examined
Apr 11, 2026Examined By
Eves, JamieProvenance
Provenance Detail
Donated by American Textile History Museum in 2017.Create Date
April 11, 2026Update Date
April 11, 2026