Kidderminster carpet

From early times Kidderminster, on the River Stour, was a cloth producing town. One of its principal products was a heavy weight, multi-purpose material known as Kidderminster "Stuff". John Pearsall and John Broom were Stuff weavers. They are credited as being the first weavers of 'Kidderminster' carpet in 1735. It was a coarse flat weave woven mainly with woollen yarns, patterned with the design visible on both sides in reverse colours. In this way the carpet was reversible on the floor. It was more affordable than the expensive hand-knotted or pile carpets available only to the wealthy and was instrumental in bringing carpet to a wider market. The opening of the Staffordshire & Worcestershire canal gave access to world-wide export and so, Kidderminster at the heart of the country, soon became the Woven Carpet Capital of the World.