HOW TO MAKE TENTS by D. H. Lawson

The Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Jul 20, 1876

FromThe Review and Herald, Review and Herald, Vol. 48, No. 4.

HOW TO MAKE TENTS.

By D. H. Lawson

BRO. J. F. CARMAN, of Potterville, Mich., has dictated the following instructions for the manufacture of family or church tents.

For a tent twelve feet wide, cut the strips of canvas twenty-six feet long (this is sufficient length for the roof and wall), and as many strips as are necessary for the length desired. The edges of these strips should be placed together and lap one inch; then stitch through both edges. It can be done to advantage on a machine. If done by hand both edges are overcast; but this is slow work, and the machine work is much more quickly done, and is just as good, if good, strong thread is used.

After the strips are all sewed together, find the exact center from either side, and measure from the center each way eight and one-half feet. The seventeen feet thus obtained will be the roof of the tent, both sides, of course. At this point, eight and one-half feet each way from the center previously found, take a tuck two inches wide. This will take up four inches of the cloth left for the wall, for which calculation has been made, and this tuck must run the whole length of the tent, on both sides. Now run a ⅜ rope in the lower edge of the tuck on both sides, and the whole length of the tent; stitch the rope fast to the tuck, but not to the wall; then work eyelet-holes in the tuck, just above the rope and close to it, at each of the four corners and at every seam on both sides. Ropes of the size mentioned above, and eight feet long must be tied in these eyelet-holes, with which to stake down the tent.

Now turn a hem about two inches deep on the bottom of the wall, the edge inside. Into this hem a rope must be drawn and eyelet-holes must be worked, the same as in the tuck, but a little larger. In these eyelet-holes, short pieces of rope may be placed with which the wall can be fastened down at the bottom, or very small stakes

may be driven through the eyelet-holes into the ground. This completes the roof and wall.

For ends, measure on the edges of the cloth ten feet, five inches; this is the longer side of the longest pieces for ends, and four pieces will be needed of the same dimensions, two for each end of the tent. Now measure the width of the canvas or drilling, as the case may be, and from the point to which you have measured on the side, measure back the same distance as the width of the cloth, then cut diagonally a square mitre across to the point marked ten feet, five inches, from the end of the cloth. Recollect, the longer side of this piece is just ten feet, five inches in length, the shorter side will lack just the width of the cloth of being so long. Having cut this piece, it will be a pattern by which the other three pieces may be cut. Be exact. Each of these pieces must now be treated in the following manner: Measure from the longest point of the pieces thus cut down the diagonal side six inches, then cut the point off square with the diagonal side. The object of thus cutting off the points is to insure the coming together of the longest sides of these strips clear to the ground, as they serve as doors to both ends of the tent, and can be tied or buttoned together. Place the point now formed on each of the long strips in sewing on to the roof exactly in the center of the roof, or what is to serve as the peak, the edges lapping each other as they will.

For the remaining pieces of the ends, place the shortest side of the piece already cut upon the long side of the cloth remaining, cutting it off square at the bottom, continuing thus to do till the ends are both filled out, the long side of the second piece by the short side of the first; of the third, by the second, &c. Sew these ends together in the same manner as the roof and wall, with the same width of hem at the bottom, and work eyelet-holes. The long pieces can be sewed together down from the peak about three feet, being left open the remainder of their length, and they will lap, in consequence of the mitre cut at the top, about six inches. This completes the tent. No names or mottoes should be painted on them.

For a tent fourteen feet in width, the strips for roof and wall must be cut twenty-nine feet long, and the long pieces for the ends, eleven feet, five inches. From the center of these roof strips, after they are sewed together, that is, from what is to be the peak, measure ten feet to the tuck at top of wall; this tuck, also, must be taken from the wall and not the roof, but both roof and wall are cut in each strip. In other respects this tent is made just like the other.

For ends of tents, drilling or heavy sheeting will answer every purpose. The length of tents will depend on the number of strips used, but experience has demonstrated that small-sized tents and more of them are best adapted to general use. Church tents are qualifiedly good; family tents are far preferable. Ten oz. duck should be used, and can be obtained by any merchant. D. H. LAWSON.