Carpet Bag
PeriodCirca 1860 - 1890
MediumWool, cotton, linen, steel, iron, leather
Dimensions15 × 24 × 5 in. (38.1 × 61 × 12.7 cm)
ClassificationsTrunks and Luggage
Credit LineGift of Katherine Truex, 1932
Object number2024.503
DescriptionA traveling bag made of ingrain carpet in shades of brown, black, dark green, dark and light red, pink, tan, and off white in a bold pattern of stylized roses within a red panel border. The rectangular bag has a reinforced base and a hinged steel open/close top frame with a pressed steel lock plate and remnants of the bag's original brown leather grip handles. The interior of the bag is lined in linen and cotton with a cotton panel central divider.Curatorial RemarksCarpet bags were enduringly popular luggage pieces from the early 19th century into the 20th century. With the development of ingrain carpeting in the 1820s and 1830s, remnants were fashioned into lightweight, sturdy, and practical traveling bags. Many were designed along the same general lines, in an overall rectangular shape with a reinforced base and a steel upper closure frame, often fitted with a locking mechanism. The bag body had no metal framing, allowing the traveler to fully pack the bag with clothing and accessories. The word "carpetbagger" became connected in a negative way with Northern speculators who traveled to former Southern Confederate states to exploit local politics and land availability immediately after the end of the Civil War. In literature, Jules Verne's traveling hero Phineas Fogg in "Around the World in Eighty Days" carried a carpet bag. Female American journalist Nellie Bly (1867-1922) packed a change of clothes and accessories in a small carpet bag in 1889 to begin her round-the-world trip publicized in American newspapers. Carpet bags gradually fell out of favor in the 20th century with the introduction of modern synthetic fabrics, lightweight metal frames, and other modern luggage designs.
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