Technology: Vacuum Cleaning
The introduction of the vacuum cleaner
was invaluable to women struggling with
cleaning their carpets the old fashioned
way.
Before the vacuum cleaner arrived cleaning
carpets was an infrequent chore. For a rough
clean, carpets could be swept with a broom
or in some homes a manual carpet sweeper
would be used. For a more thorough clean
the carpets needed to be rolled up, taken
outside, and beaten with a stick. Without
the help of a maid this could be an incredibly
difficult undertaking from the housewife.
The vacuum cleaner simplified housework
and also brought the terms 'vacuuming',
'luxing' and 'hoovering' into common usage.
One
of the few ways to beat the dust that accumulated
in early homes was to hang carpets, rugs,
blankets and even clothes over a clothesline
and smack them with a stick. Typical carpet
beaters, like this one, were made of wood,
rattan, cane, wicker or wire. (Otago Settlers
Museum Collection)
The
carpet sweeper was the first mechanical
device to aid household cleaning. Carpet
sweepers were first patented in the 1850s
with the modern variety emerging around
the end of the nineteenth century. British
firm Ewbank began making carpet sweepers,
such as the Ewbank models displayed here,
in 1889. (Otago Settlers Museum Collection)
The
qualities and features of a range of carpet
sweepers are extolled in very great detail
in this newspaper advertisement from the
early 1900s. (Otago Settlers Museum Collection)
One
alternative to beating and sweeping was
to use a hand pumped vacuum cleaner such
as the Baby Daisy (pictured) or the Star
vacuums. The Baby Daisy, introduced in 1904,
was essentially a broom handle fixed to
a set of bellows. The Star, with its larger
circular bellows, was another variation
of this type of suction device. (Otago Settlers
Museum Collection)
In
1901 Briton Cecil Booth invented a machine
to suck up dust and dirt which he named
the vacuum cleaner. The device was also
known by the nickname 'Puffing Billy'. In
1908 American James W Spangler patented
a more practical device that would set the
pattern for future vacuum cleaner design.
W.H. Hoover began manufacture of a refined
version of Spangler's invention and the
name Hoover became synonymous with vacuum
cleaners. (Otago Settlers Museum Collection)
In
1912 Lux of Sweden produced its first vacuum
cleaner, the Lux 1. In 1919 the company
became Electrolux, a name that like Hoover
would also become synonymous with vacuum
cleaning devices. (Otago Settlers Museum
Collection)
The
labour saving, cleaning and 'disinfecting'
features of the new Electrolux are detailed
in this newspaper advertisement from the
1920s. (Otago Settlers Museum Collection)
Another
popular vacuum cleaner make was Haywin.
This advertisement features the numerous
attachments that come with the cleaning
unit. (Otago Settlers Museum Collection)
[Next:
The 'Fridge' Arrives]
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