Early Kansas silk is casualty of cheap imports
In the early years of Marion County, one of the many business ventures begun by enterprising pioneers was the production of silk.
Silk had been produced in other parts of the United States, and was brought to Kansas as the frontier moved westward.
Mennonite immigrants from the Ukraine in Russia brought with them the knowledge of how to make silk. It is produced using silkworms feeding on mulberry leaves.
The first commercial operation was at Peabody. A Hillsboro station was developed later.
The silk-making process includes the hatching of silkworms from eggs and growing them to adulthood by feeding them mulberry leaves.
The worms then weave cocoons of silk threads around their bodies. They are killed with heat, then the cocoons are dropped into boiling water and the silk thread unwound, twisted, and woven into fabric.
In 1885, some finished silk fabric was displayed at the Kansas State Fair which was held at Peabody. That same year, the Kansas Silk Association was formed.
Known as "sericulture," the cottage industry got a big boost in 1887 when the state legislature appropriated $13,000 for establishment of a silk station. It was built at Peabody.
Propagation and processing took place in a two-story building on 10 acres planted to mulberry and olive trees.
The station mainly produced silk worm eggs which were sold to people who grew the worms at home and returned the cocoons to the station for processing.
Helen Kroeker of Hillsboro worked at the silk station and then established a similar station at Hillsboro.
It grew rapidly and soon employed more people than the Peabody station.
Many farmers took the opportunity to make additional income by supplying cocoons for the mill.
The silk produced in Kansas was of excellent quality, but by the turn of the century, silk production had been abandoned.
Weather problems and competition from cheap imported silk made silk production unprofitable and led to its demise.
(Source: Marion County Past and Present, by Sondra Van Meter, 1972)
