Scraping Lint
Lynne H. DeMont (lynne@godzilla.lib.pdx.edu)
Mon, 18 Apr 1994 12:12:07 ECT
Civil War memoirs and medical sources mention the process of
"scraping lint". Context would indicate that this activity produced
some kind of bandage or material used in the treating or binding of
wounds. On a recent trip to Virginia, I checked with the Virginia
Historical Society Library for information about lint, but they could
offer little help. The Siege Museum in Petersburg, however, had a
piece of lint in their medical display. It appeared to be a square of
flattened cotton batting, similar to what is now used in homemade
quilts. It had been burned or charred on one side. The Museum staff
could give me no information beyond what I could see in the case.
One Confederate medical history text described lint as combed or
carded raw cotton that was BAKED in an oven; hence a clue to the
blackened appearance of the sample I saw in Petersburg. The charring
process has me mystified as I believe sterilization as a medical
axiom occurred long after the war's end.
Does anyone know of a reference that describes the raw material,
process, technique, and final product of "scraping lint"? How was
this product used in the medical procedures on both sides of the war?
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
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* Lynne H. DeMont *
* Reserve Library Supervisor *
* Portland State Univ Library *
* P O Box 1151 *
* Portland, OR 97207-1151 *
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