Feather duster
Encyclopedia
Ostrich
The Ostrich is one or two species of large flightless birds native to Africa, the only living member of the genus Struthio. Some analyses indicate that the Somali Ostrich may be better considered a full species apart from the Common Ostrich, but most taxonomists consider it to be a...
bird that are wound onto the handle by a wrapped wire. Dusters vary in size by are most often between 14" and 32" in total length. Some dusters have a retractable casing instead of a dowel handle. These dusters are typically used by rack-jobbers and truck driver
Truck driver
A truck driver , is a person who earns a living as the driver of a truck, usually a semi truck, box truck, or dump truck.Truck drivers provide an essential service to...
s who need to dust store shelves, and like to retract the feathers into the handle to avoid damage.
Feather dusters are effective in dusting tight areas, or areas where there are a lot of odds and ends to dust around. The individual feathers are able to penetrate through the knick-knacks and pull the dust out of the area without disturbing items. On large open surfaces or walls, or in trying to get spider web
Spider web
A spider web, spiderweb, spider's web or cobweb is a device built by a spider out of proteinaceous spider silk extruded from its spinnerets....
s in the ceiling, either a feather duster or other dusters like lambswool
Lambswool
Lambswool is wool which is 50mm or shorter from the first shearing of a sheep, at around the age of seven months. It is soft, elastic, and slippery, and is used in high-grade textiles....
or synthetic dusters will work.
History
In 1870, the original idea for the feather duster was conceived in a broom factory in Jones County, IowaJones County, Iowa
-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 20,638 in the county, with a population density of . There were 8,911 housing units, of which 8,151 were occupied.-2000 census:...
, USA. A farmer brought a bundle of turkey feathers into the factory asking if they could be used to assemble a brush. E.E. Hoag used these feathers to invent the first feather duster. Using a short broom stick and splitting the feathers with a pocket knife
Pocket knife
A pocket knife is a folding knife with one or more blades that fit inside the handle that can still fit in a pocket. It is also known as a jackknife or jack-knife...
, the duster was found to be too stiff for use. In 1874, the Hoag Duster Company was founded, which became a pioneer of feather dusters in the U.S. state of Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
.
In 1874, Susan Hibbard of Geneva Lake
Geneva Lake
Geneva Lake is a body of freshwater in southeastern Wisconsin in Walworth county. On its shores are the city of Lake Geneva, and the villages of Fontana-on-Geneva-Lake, and Williams Bay....
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, USA used discarded turkey feathers to invent a feather duster. Hibbard filed a patent (U.S. patent #177,939) on November 13, 1874 which was issued on May 30, 1876. After a hard fought legal battle against her husband, George Hibbard, and the National Feather Duster Company in December 1881, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:* Central District of Illinois* Northern District of Illinois...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
ruled in favor of Hibbard giving her priority
Priority right
In patent, industrial design rights and trademark laws, a priority right or right of priority is a time-limited right, triggered by the first filing of an application for a patent, an industrial design or a trademark respectively...
of invention of the feather duster.
South African ostrich feather dusters were developed in Johannesburg
Johannesburg
Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
by missionary, broom factory manager, Harry S. Beckner in 1903. He felt that the Ostrich feathers made a convenient tool for cleaning up the machines at the broom factory. His first ostrich feather dusters were wound on broom handles using the foot powered kick winders and the same wire used to attach broom straw.
The first ostrich feather duster company in the United States was formed in 1913 by Harry S. Beckner and his brother George Beckner in Athol
Athol, Massachusetts
Athol is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 11,584 at the 2010 census.-History:Originally called Pequoiag, the area was first settled by five families in September 1735. When the township was incorporated in 1762, the name was changed to Athol...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and has survived till this day as the Beckner Feather Duster Company under the care of George Beckner's great granddaughter, Margret Fish Rempher. Today the largest manufacturer of Ostrich Feather Dusters is Klein Karoo International (Feathers) which is located in Oudtshoorn, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
The feather duster was considered a status symbol in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Types
There are several types of feathers used in feather dusters, but ostrichOstrich
The Ostrich is one or two species of large flightless birds native to Africa, the only living member of the genus Struthio. Some analyses indicate that the Somali Ostrich may be better considered a full species apart from the Common Ostrich, but most taxonomists consider it to be a...
feathers are most often used. Feathers for dusters are the ostrich families most valuable industrial commodity.
Black ostrich feathers
These feathers come from the male ostrich and are very soft with feathers that are more "stringy" in nature, resulting in a premium duster.Gray ostrich feathers
These feathers are more stark than the black feathers and are often sold at grocery storeGrocery store
A grocery store is a store that retails food. A grocer, the owner of a grocery store, stocks different kinds of foods from assorted places and cultures, and sells these "groceries" to customers. Large grocery stores that stock products other than food, such as clothing or household items, are...
s.
Floss ostrich feathers
These feathers are the most soft and delicate feathers and come from underneath the bird's wings. Floss ostrich feathers are more expensive and are the highest quality ostrich feathers.Chick feathers
These feathers are more pointed and stark than ostrich feathers, are usually sold at very low prices, and are inferior in quality.Mechanics of function
It is a misconception by many on the internet that feather dusters are effective by means of static electricityElectrostatics
Electrostatics is the branch of physics that deals with the phenomena and properties of stationary or slow-moving electric charges....
. This is a falsehood. Ostrich feather dusters are effective by means of the tiny barbules on the feathers themselves that act as fingers to collect the dust. They are often used around electronics because of their resistance to static electricity.