MASLAND REVISITED

As a follow on to our piece about American carpet manufacturer turned hunting apparel makers C. H. Masland of Pennsylvania, we’d like to share some recent additions. Unlike other outdoor clothing companies, Masland came to it relatively late, and almost by accident. They had a wartime contract for canvases, clothing and tent awnings, but their main business had always been carpet manufacturing.

It is perhaps this difference that makes their hunting clothes so unique, and so unlike the typical brands of the era. You can almost see in the garments that they were testing and creating new design features, zipped pockets, press stud fastenings, suede and leather patches, quite often using up their surplus stock of military-grade zips and hardware. Unfortunately, their foray into the world of outdoor clothing was short-lived, and production soon turned back to carpets, perhaps due to the bigger competition of such greats as Sears & Roebucks, L L Bean, Penneys etc, or perhaps as a result of some of those off the wall design details!