Prototype. Chapter text drafted from the research notes and not yet checked at the archives. Images awaiting permission are marked.

Tufting Machine

Image · not yet checked at the source · Image permission pending

Date: circa 1964 (record: 1964)
Place: Shaw Industries, Dalton, Georgia
Held by: New Georgia Encyclopedia (Project)
Collection: New Georgia Encyclopedia
Number: NGE m-4007
Size: photograph
Themes: Machine tufting & Dalton

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Cite this source

“Tufting Machine,” circa 1964 (record: 1964). NGE m-4007, New Georgia Encyclopedia, New Georgia Encyclopedia (Project). dlg.usg.edu/record/nge_ngen_m-4007.

Research notes

Black-and-white photograph. DLG/NGE description: "An early twelve-foot-wide tufting machine in operation at Shaw Industries, circa 1964. In this photo, yarn is fed through tubes at high speeds from cone positions at the left. ... First invented in the early 1950s, these machines allowed tufted carpets to compete successfully against woven carpets. By 1965 more than 85 percent of broadloom carpeting sold in the United States was tufted." Rights holder: Courtesy of Shaw Industries, Inc. NGE page: https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/business-economy/shaw-industries/m-4007/ Why it matters: Building the machine: a dated photo of a 12-foot broadloom tufting machine in use, c. 1964. NGE's "85 percent by 1965" figure is a secondary claim; source it. Found: Digital Library of Georgia, search "tufting machine", 2026-10-28.