alum leather belt bag

[George]

One of the historical types of leather treatment was with alum.

September 10, 1777 The Pennsylvania Gazette
"N.B. Ready money is given, by said Mentz, for any quantity of tanned and allom dressed sheep skins."

THE SOUTH CAROLINA GAZETTE
November 5, 1737
"This is to give Notice, that Tho. Robinson living in one of Mr. Laurens new Houses, No. 3, dresses Buck Skins, prepares Alom Leather, washes and [dyes?] Buck skin Breeches of several Colours, and likewise buys Buck Skins, that are not merchantable."

It’s interesting stuff, with an interesting history. The process for making it is called tawing. Taw is defined as ”˜to transform the skin of an animal into white leather by the application of minerals, emulsions, etc.’ The chemicals used are alum and salt, mainly. One who does that is called a tawer. White leather is just that, the process apparently bleaches the hide. Down through time ”˜white leather’ became ”˜whitleather’. The stuff is limber, soft, but very tough, so we have the old saying, “tough as whitleather”.

THE SOUTH CAROLINA GAZETTE
August 10, 1738
Charleston, South Carolina
This is to give Notice, that Mary Robinson Widow of Th: Robinson deceased, still carries on his Trade in the same House, viz Mr. Laurens's House Number (3) near the New-Market, she has ready made Buck and Doe skin Breeches, either natural or black, purple and Cloth Colours, likewise white Leather, a choice parcel of fine Wool. She also dresses Deer Skins with or without the Hairs, dyes, washes and mends Buck-skin Breeches."

I was given a small piece of homemade alum deerskin many years ago, and I made it into a small belt bag. I use if for a variety of jobs, it has seen hard use for a long time, but it has lived up to it’s reputation, it’s tough. It’s has taken on a bit of patina over the years, and is no longer very white.











It’s just one piece folded into the bag with inserts sewn in the ends using waxed flax thread. The closure is just a couple of lead balls pounded flat, with leather thongs to wrap and secure them.

Has anyone else worked with alum leather aka whitleather?

Spence

 

[tenngun]

Alum tan is as old as civilization, as above known in America. Takes about two weeks and ain't as soft as brain. Smoked it's hard to tell from brain espesily if you remove the epidemis when dehairing. Real good for fur.

 

[ZUG]

Nice belt bag you got there :thumbsup: .

 

[Artificer]

Spence,

First, no, I have not worked with it.

I have wondered if it was used by the Patriot American Military for cross belts and over the shoulder slings during the AWI, as a substitute for Buff Leather (which is a different type of tanning)?

I used to use a lot of White Latigo leather for 18th/19th century military slings in the 70's, before "Buff" leather was more commonly available.

Gus

P.S. Definitely hope Labonte or Capt. Jas. chimes in on this topic.

 

[Elnathan]

Has anyone else worked with alum leather aka whitleather?

Spence

Yeah. I tawed a calfskin hair-on about ten years back and used it to make the flap of my hunting pouch. The alum kept the hair from falling out. The hide came out very thick and stiff and I was completely unable to soften it by breaking it as it dried, braintan-style. Re-wet it and tried again, to no avail - I eventually ended up soaking it with with a mixture of neatsfoot oil and soap, which allowed my to soften it enough to where it was useable. Still pretty stiff, but otherwise the same as any other leather in the 8-10 oz range, I think.

Haven't had mold problems with the tawed stuff like I have had with the bark-tanned leather that makes up the rest of the pouch, now that i think of it. Must be the salt.

 

[SgtErv]

Simple design and quite handy. I like the buttons made from lead balls. I might have to incorporate that. A belt bag is on my list. Thanks for the close ups!

 

[smo]

Tanner a deer hide several years ago with the alum & salt method it came out really stiff I used as a wall hanger for years then decided to make a hair on knife sheath It turned out well but the remaining salt in the hide rusted my blade . I. Still have pieces of the old hide around and the hair is still in place .....but so is the salt :haha:

 

[Capt. Jas.]

Nice little bag there Spence.
I used to do some tawing as a young teen. Ground hogs were a favorite because I could get paid for taking them out and then I had a hide to work and meat for "sammiches".
Gus, I have also wondered about this as a buff replacement but wondering is as far as I ever went with it.

 

[Capt. Jas.]

Oh... Gus,... My tawed leather did not like to get wet after I staked it to a pliable conformity. Maybe it was my process but it always wanted to get too stiff if it got water saturated. If this is a trait and not just my lack of technique, it might not have been a great buff replacement. I used alum, salt and eggs in my vat.

 

[Artificer]

Now that is interesting.

FWIW, in the booklet The Leatherworker in Eighteenth Century Williamsburg, it mentions:

"Tawed leather, though soft and stretchy, is very strong; quite appropriately, one of his eighteenth century contemporaries described Robert Bland, the Williamsburg Lawyer and political pamphleteer as "staunch and tough as whitleather."

I wonder if they had a different tawing recipe?

Gus

 

[Stophel]

If I remember correctly, I've read that the alum tawing can actually wash out of the "leather" if it gets soaked, leaving rawhide. Is this correct?

 

[LaBonte]

If I remember correctly, I've read that the alum tawing can actually wash out of the "leather" if it gets soaked, leaving rawhide. Is this correct?

Yes just like brain tanning the hide is technically not "tanned" without the introduction of aldehydes/tannins. In the case of brain tan this done via smoking, whereas tawing does not actually produce a skin that is stable in the wet condition, i.e., imputrescible in the wet state, and therefore cannot accurately be described as having been tanned; consequently, in a strict sense, a tawed skin is not leather. Tawed leather can be tanned i.e. made water reistant by smoking or dying with Oak Bark, Logwood, Sumac, Fustic, Elderberry Juice, Cochineal and Persian Berries since most those dyes contain glutaraldehyde/tannic acids. Today more stable products are obtained by using aluminium chloride or sulphate instead of alum. Also the use of a pretannin or retannin with glutaraldehyde is used today.

 

[Artificer]

Thanks for the great info.

So much for the possibility that white cross belts and slings were made from tawed leather for the military, except by unscrupulous people.

Gus