[Alan H]

I see that Andyfg wears a Northumberland Tartan kilt, and th eother night I got to thinking....

In my line on ancestors is a Captain Christian Piercy, who served in the Continental Army, Pennsylvania, in the Revolutionary War. He was a Mason, frm the Lodge in Alexandria, and the book of the History of the lodge, published in around 1820 lists him as being of the "Piercy's of Northumberland".

I understand that "Percy" and "Piercy" in Northumbria is quite the Historic name, and so since Captain Christian is a bit of a standout in my family history, I'd be interested in information regarding that tartan and its availability. It's not the "usual" tartan, not at all!

Anybody got any insights on the Northumberland Tartan and it's history? Anybody seen trews made of the stuff, or a shirt?

[cajunscot]

Originally Posted by Alan H

I see that Andyfg wears a Northumberland Tartan kilt, and th eother night I got to thinking....

In my line on ancestors is a Captain Christian Piercy, who served in the Continental Army, Pennsylvania, in the Revolutionary War. He was a Mason, frm the Lodge in Alexandria, and the book of the History of the lodge, published in around 1820 lists him as being of the "Piercy's of Northumberland".

I understand that "Percy" and "Piercy" in Northumbria is quite the Historic name, and so since Captain Christian is a bit of a standout in my family history, I'd be interested in information regarding that tartan and its availability. It's not the "usual" tartan, not at all!

Anybody got any insights on the Northumberland Tartan and it's history? Anybody seen trews made of the stuff, or a shirt?

A nice summary of the Northumberland tartan's history can be found here, Alan:

A short history of the Tartan


It is not widely known that the county of Northumberland has an official tartan and moreover that this tartan is held by many to be one of the oldest check patterns, predating the more colourful Highland tartans which followed it.

The Northumberland Tartan, variously known as the Border or Shepherd Plaid, is also closely linked to the Percy family, forming the official dress of the Duke of Northumberland's piper. Originally worn by shepherds tending their flocks in the Border area, the check is now the Shepherd family tartan and worn throughout the world.

The history of the Shepherd check is most interesting. Textile historians have been able to date a fragment of the pattern, discovered in a bottle near Falkirk, to the 3rd century A.D. thus leading to the belief that the pattern was known as far back as Roman times.

Originally woven using the natural hues of the undyed sheep's fleece, plants such as the water flag and alder bark were later used to colour the yarn. Similar checks in natural shades of greens, browns and greys were also produced.

It is commonly held that Sir Walter Scott popularised these 'Border drabs' by wearing a pair of checked trews in London, making the wearing of checks a fashion 'craze' in society circles and encouraging the development of the famous Border woollen mills, several of which remain. The 'shepherd's plaid' is even mentioned by Dickens in his 'Sketches by Boz'.

Many very old shepherd's plaids remain as treasured heirlooms in Northumberland homes and farmhouses to this day and it is still possible to obtain the Northumberland tartan as a memento of the heritage of our wonderful county of Northumberland.

If you have any special memories of the Shepherd's plaid, we would be delighted to hear from you.
Please click here to contact us.

-- http://www.northumberlandtartan.co.uk/history.html

And here as well:

http://www.regiments.org/tradition/tartans/northumb.htm

My Wilkinsons are from Northumberland, so I've always wanted something in the Northumberland tartan. One of my good friends is a Shepherd, and he has a scarf in it.

The tartan is similar to the Burns Check, which is worn by aficionados of Robert Burns the world over:



Cheers,

Todd

[M. A. C. Newsome]

The one thing that I don't like about the Northumberland tartan (aka Shepherd Check) is that it is always woven in such a small pattern. I think the tartan would look much more masculine if it was woven in a larger check, like the Rob Roy tartan, or the Moncreiff tartan is.

If anyone is interested in getting some larger check Northumberland tartan woven up, let me know!
M

[paulhenry]

only problem might be , that it would look like dark gingham, or the old picnic favourite, "bungalow check"

[Schultz]

I wholeheartedly agree with Matt. For a scarf, the Northumberland tartan as it's usually produced is wonderful, but for a kilt? It would remind me too much of the black/white checked skirt my wife has!

[cessna152towser]

Not a kilt but a wee stuffed toy scotty dog that my late mother made and which she gave to me at Christmas 1958, covered in shepherd's
tartan material. Perhaps the black and white pattern suggests this may be part dalmatian rather than a thoroughbred scotty!

[kiltimabar]

Originally Posted by M. A. C. Newsome

The one thing that I don't like about the Northumberland tartan (aka Shepherd Check) is that it is always woven in such a small pattern. I think the tartan would look much more masculine if it was woven in a larger check, like the Rob Roy tartan, or the Moncreiff tartan is.

If anyone is interested in getting some larger check Northumberland tartan woven up, let me know!
M

Just a guess, but mightn't it be that the Northumberland tartan is woven so small because at at distance it appears gray, whereas if the checks were large, it would have a more dominant white, which is supposedly something to be avoided in a man's garment?

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Hey guys,

I played around with a photo of a kilt I made in the Moncrieffe tartan, and this should be close to what the Northumberland tartan would look like in a kilt with a larger check.

It's in my latest blog posting:
http://blog.albanach.org/2006/04/nor...nd-tartan.html

M

[Alan H]

Trews in this tartan might look pretty sharp...the smaller check I mean.

I just looked over your blog, Matt, and it reminds me of what's sometimes called "Buffalo Check" here in the States. I saw a striking kilt made of red buffalo check at teh Campbell games last year.

[andyfg]

So, I'm out hard at work teaching philosophy and arrive home to find you've been talking about my beloved tartan!

I like it, of course, because of the district connection, and because I think it looks very sharp. I have worn it for a couple of weddings with a black argyle, white shirt, black tie, black hose and brogues, with tartan flashes. I think the whole black/white look is very stylish (but not your "average" tartan).

Matt, I do like your suggestion, of the larger check. I had always assumed that the tartan had to be wovern k5w5, as that is all I have ever seen. Who knows, perhaps after the Fitzgibbon! Christmas 2007.