International Wool Secretariat

Identity Statement

Reference code(s)	: GB 2159 International Wool Secretariat
Held at	: University of the Arts London: London College of Fashion   Click here to find out how to view this collection at http://www.arts.ac.uk/study-at-ual/library-services/collections-and-archives/london-college-of-fashion/ ›
Full title	: International Wool Secretariat
Date(s)	: 1940s-1970s
Level of description	: Collection (fonds)
Extent	: Approximately 2000 black and white photographs
Name of creator(s)	: London Press Office and Public Relations Department of the International Wool Secretariat

Context

Administrative/Biographical history:

The International Wool Secretariat (IWS) was founded in 1937 and promoted the use and export of Australian wool, working with textile companies, designers and retailers. The International Wool Secretariat soon began special export promotions to the USA and South Africa, and during the 1940s and 1950s offices were established in several European countries, Canada and Japan. In 1964 the International Wool Secretariat began to use their Woolmark logo and continued to expand in size and profit, branching out into new areas such as knitwear, including menswear and womenswear, and carpets. In 1994 the activities of the International Wool Secretariat were merged with those of the Australian Wool Research and Promotion Organisation (AWRAP), and operated as one organisation under the control of AWRAP. In 1997 the International Wool Secretariat became the Woolmark Company, specialising in textile innovation and technical research, and the London office was closed as Woolmark moved its operations and headquarters to Melbourne, Australia.

Content

Scope and content/abstract:

Records of the London Office of the International Wool Secretariat, 1940s-1970s, comprising publicity photographs of womenswear, menswear and some childrenswear, mainly from the UK but including some from Europe and the USA.

Access & Use

Language/scripts of material:
English

System of arrangement:

The records are unsorted.

Conditions governing access:

Access to the collection is by appointment only.

Conditions governing reproduction:

No photocopying is permitted although photographs may be taken at the discretion of the Head of Learning Resources.

Finding aids:

The records are uncatalogued.

Archival Information

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

The records were donated to the London College of Fashion by the Public Relations Office of the London Office of the International Wool Secretariat on the closure of the office in 1997.

Allied Materials

Related material:

National Register of Archives: Click here to view NRA record

Publication note:

Description Notes

Archivist's note:
Sources: Australian Science and Technology Heritage Centre's Australian Science at Work website: http://www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/asaw/asawhome.htm; The Woolmark Company's website: http://www.woolmark.com/twc/history.htm. Compiled by Julie Tancell as part of the RSLP AIM25 project.

Rules or conventions:
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal Place and Corporate Names 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions:
July 2002