Stitches and Niches
The Specialty Sewing Department
During the mid 20th century, orders for Aero’s innovative neoprene tarps outpaced demand for traditional cotton canvas tarps. Since neoprene tarps seams are glued instead of sewed, expert seamstresses — including Irene Blankenship, Minnie Hooker and Margaret Rice, who had perfected the complicated French seams that cotton canvas tarps required — found themselves with less work to do.
Recognizing an opportunity, Aero delved into small canvas projects that could appeal to new market segments, and the Specialty Sewing Department was born.
Inspired by cottage industries, this department of skilled women headed by Margaret Rice crafted lightweight products that could be churned out quickly and easily. Products like canvas tote bags, permit holders, custom boat covers and air ducts all used less fabric and required shorter seams than the tarps they’d sewed in the past. The Specialty Sewing Department was staffed by expert seamstresses, including Irene Blankenship, Minnie Hooker and Margaret Rice.
Paper registrations were required for each tractor trailer. To keep track of these papers, which were similar to today’s temporary license tags, trucking companies used pouches that would keep the necessary permit safe and accessible. Created by the thousands by the Specialty Sewing Department, these canvas permit holders often featured snaps to keep the pouch closed.
Custom boat covers were highly sought after, and boat owners from near and far drove their boats to Aero’s Indianapolis headquarters. The skilled women of the Specialty Sewing Department could measure each individual boat’s dimensions and create a custom canvas cover to fit it exactly. Although these products were extremely popular, when the seamstresses retired, Aero withdrew from the custom boat cover market.
Refrigerated trailers are frequently used for hauling meat, flowers, pharmaceuticals or any other products that require cold temperatures. A flat piece of fabric that hangs from the ceiling of a refrigerated trailer known as an air duct allows cold air to travel from a refrigeration unit throughout the 53-foot length of a trailer. An additional duct allows air to return to the refrigeration unit to be recycled. This product line shifted to Omaha when the Specialty Sewing Department shut down.
When Aero’s first employee, Margaret Rice, began sewing tarps in 1945, By the time Rice retired, Aero would be renowned throughout the transportation world for its innovations…more