6.2

Straw-Weaving in the Black Forest

Clockmaking was not the sole craft in the Black Forest. Women and girls had a small additional income from weaving the straw bands used in hat-making. As from the beginning of the 18th century, straw hats were an integral part of the traditional costume of Black Forest women. In 1785 in Triberg alone 30,000 hats were being manufactured.

At the outset of the 19th century, straw-weaving met with a crisis. The plaited bands from the Black Forest could not survive in the face of competition from the more fine Swiss bands. In addition to that, the administrator (Obervogt) of Triberg, Dr. Karl Theodor Huber (1758-1816), saw to it that quality improved.

The sum of 20 Kreuzer per day, an amount sufficient for survival, could be earned from making the finely plaited bands. In 1852 the first straw-weaving school in the Black Forest opened its doors in Furtwangen. The first teacher to work there was Cölestine Eisele, nee Kirner (1798-1865), a highly gifted straw weaver who even created her own patterns. In 1927 the school was closed down “due to a lack of interest and very poor payment for the woven straw”.