Ipswich Katherine Chaison Lace-making in Ipswich, Mass., was a cottage industry for women of all ages, reaching its peak between 1750 and 1840. Ipswich is the only town that has produced significant quantities of documented, hand-made lace on a sustained commercial level. There is nothing inherent in Ipswich itself that made it especially suitable for lace-making. The origins of the industry are more likely to be found in the quirks of immigration history. Two waves of immigrants came to Ipswich from Nottingham, the east Midlands city that was the center of lace-making in England. L Lace Making lace by hand required little capital outlay, so it was an ideal means for these newly immigrant women and girls to help their families’ gain a secure economic foundation in their new country. At the beginning of the industry, the women sold or bartered directly to general merchants, but by the early nineteenth century, lace makers were selling their product to specialized merchants for resale. With the introduction of machinery in 1824 to produce the netting, Ipswich women participated in an outwork system, taking pieces of net home to embroider with designs. The lace Susan Lord Lakeman was one of the last Ipswich lace makers and eyewitness to the lace industry. She died in 1905. This photograph taken in 1903 shows her holding her lace pillow on her lap. Page 34 ■ Antiques Journal ■ March 2010