By the start of the American Revolution, people could practice knitting as a hobby for relaxation or creative expression. More often, however, professionals practiced it as an everyday skill. While people may have processed some wool on a small scale at Michilimackinac, they more easily obtained many knitted goods, especially stockings, through established long-distance trade networks. This reliance on purchased items, combined with limited access to raw materials, helps explain why knitting in this community differed from practices in more agricultural regions.
Supplying the Community
The Michilimackinac merchant John Askin recorded tools associated with wool processing, including shepherd’s crooks, wool cards, and sheep shears, in a household inventory. This suggests that some level of wool production took place in the local area or at his farm. However, he did not list owning sheep, a spinning wheel, or a loom, nor did he mention knitting in his journals. If people processed wool into garments locally, they likely did so on a very small scale and primarily for household use rather than broader distribution.
Merchants at Michilimackinac, such as Askin, played a key role in supplying the community. They ordered goods through agents and maintained a steady stock of commonly requested items. In contrast, soldiers depended on military supply systems to issue their clothing and equipment. Both civilians and soldiers required multiple pairs of stockings to meet the demands of daily wear, travel, and regular washing. Some were frame knitted, while others were knit by hand. Military writer Thomas Simes advised that a newly commissioned officer should obtain “18 pairs of stockings,” while another junior officer purchased “30 pairs of silk worsted stockings” before setting out on his travels. These examples show how essential knitted goods were in everyday life.
At Michilimackinac, traders brought in many goods, including knitted items, rather than producing them locally. Purchasing ready-made stockings and other knitted items from professional knitters proved far more efficient than completing each step of production by hand. Raising sheep, shearing wool, cleaning and carding fibers, spinning yarn, and knitting garments required significant time, labor, and specialized tools. In a remote trading post with limited agricultural capacity, most residents relied on trade. Although some communities in agricultural regions of Canada processed fiber at home, they still faced constraints from climate, seasonal labor demands, and access to materials.
Knitting at Home
Those who knit at home and had access to yarn used simple but effective tools. Knitters used needles—often called pins, needles, or wires in the 18th century—to create garments. Instead of the straight needles common today, most knitters in the 1770s used double-pointed needles. Makers typically crafted these tools from steel, bone, or wood, and their small size allowed knitters to produce a tight, durable fabric well suited for stockings. Many knitters worked without written patterns and relied on memory, repetition, and shared knowledge. This approach required skill and practice, but it also allowed experienced knitters to work efficiently without written instruction.
People could easily fit handknitting into daily life. They carried small projects and worked whenever they found a spare moment. The repetitive motions kept their hands busy while allowing their minds to stay engaged in conversation or other tasks. Because plain knitting required less light than writing or many other detailed activities, individuals could continue working during long winter evenings when daylight hours were short.
Today, many people view knitting as a relaxing hobby supported by abundant materials and patterns. In the 18th century, however, people depended on handknitting as a practical skill closely tied to comfort and daily routine. At Michilimackinac, reliance on trade combined with limited local production shows how environment, economy, and access to resources shaped everyday life, especially during the disruptions of the American Revolution.
For more information and to see 18th-century knitted goods in use, visit Colonial Michilimackinac during the summer of 2026 as we commemorate the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. For hours and program schedules, visit mackinacparks.com.
Posted March 26, 2026
By LeeAnn Ewer, Curator of Interpretation
Interested in learning more about clothing at Michilimackinac? Staying Warm: Women’s Winter Clothing at Colonial Michilimackinac – Mackinac State Historic Parks, Greatcoats: Another Cold Winter Garment – Mackinac State Historic Parks
