For centuries, the islanders of
Lewis and Harris, the
Uists,
Benbecula and
Barra wove cloth known as ( in
Scottish Gaelic) by hand. Originally woven by
crofters, this cloth was woven for personal and practical uses and was ideal protection against the often cold climate of northern Scotland. The cloth was also used for trade or
barter, eventually becoming a form of currency amongst islanders; it was not unusual for rents to be paid in blankets or lengths of . By the end of the 18th century, the
spinning of wool yarn from local raw materials had become a staple industry for crofters. Finished handmade cloth was exported to the Scottish mainland and traded, along with other commodities produced by the Islanders, such as
goat and
deer skins.
Parmelia saxatilis, a lichen known as "crottle", gave a deep red colour and distinctive scent to older Harris tweed fabrics. As the
Industrial Revolution reached Scotland, mainland manufacturers developed mechanised weaving methods, with weavers in the Outer Hebrides retaining their traditional processes. The islanders of Lewis and Harris had long been known for the quality of their handwoven fabrics, but up to the middle of the nineteenth century, this fabric was produced mainly for either home use or for trade and barter at the local market. When
Alexander Murray, 6th Earl of Dunmore, inherited the North
Harris Estate from his father in 1836, production of tweed in Outer Hebrides was still entirely manual. Wool was washed in soft, peaty water before being dyed using dyestuffs derived from local plants and
lichens. It was then processed and spun, before being hand woven by the crofters in their cottages. Traditional island tweed was characterised by the flecks of colour achieved through the use of natural dyes, including the lichen known as "crottle" (
Parmelia saxatilis and
Parmelia omphalodes), which gave the fabric deep red or purple-brown and rusty orange colours respectively. The use of these lichens also resulted in a distinctive scent that made older Harris tweed fabrics easily identifiable. Upon the death of Murray in 1843, responsibility for his
estate on the Isle of Harris passed to his wife,
Lady Catherine Herbert. Herbert noticed the marketing potential and high quality of the tweed cloth produced locally by two sisters from the village of Strond. Known as the Paisley Sisters after the town where they had trained, the fabric woven by them was of a remarkably higher quality than that produced by untrained crofters. In 1846, the Countess commissioned the sisters to weave lengths of tweed with the
Murray family
tartan. She sent the finished fabric to be made up into jackets for the
gamekeepers and
ghillies on her estate. Being hardwearing and water resistant, the new clothing was highly suited to life on the Dunmores' estate. Her ideas were complemented by the work of
"Fanny" Beckett. She organised the weavers, created training and quality control procedures, and promoted Harris tweed as a sustainable and local industry. The Countess began to promote the local textile as a fashionable cloth for hunting and sporting wear. It soon became the fabric of choice for the landed gentry and
aristocracy of the time, including members of
Queen Victoria’s inner circle. With demand established for this high quality "Harris tweed", Lady Catherine sent more girls to the Scottish mainland for training. She improved the
yarn production process to create a more consistent, workable cloth and by the late 1840s, merchants from Edinburgh to London were supplying the privileged classes with hand-woven Harris tweed. "Fanny" Beckett moved to London in 1888 and the "Scottish Home Industries", which managed the new product, became a limited company in 1896. From this point on, the Harris tweed industry grew, reaching a peak production figure of 7.6 million yards in 1966. ==Harris Tweed Authority==