Fiber tools: hand carders, two pairs

Hand carders are used as a pair to prepare fiber for spinning. By pulling the carders in opposite directions, the wool or cotton fibers align to make spinning easier. While the wooden pieces were handmade, the leather with wires poked through was purchased as "carding cloth" and then nailed to the board. Cards vary in the length and density of the wires, depending on the fineness of the fiber to be carded. The older pair of these cards has straight wires, while the other set's wires are bent. These 1800s-era hand carders were collected by Frances Goodrich and donated to the Southern Highland Craft Guild in the 1930s. The creator of these items is unknown