Overhead sewing machine

Overhead sewing machine: made by Robertson and Orchar Ltd., Dundee. Used to sew jute cloth into sacks. Overhead refers to the form of stitch, an adaptation of the old type of hand stitch which could not be unravelled easily. It was particularly useful for producing bags required for heavy duties, such as coal sacks. A special form of spiral needle was used which gave extra power when sewing into thicker material. Robertson & Orchar was a Dundee based mill-engineer and textile machinery manufacturing company. It was formed in 1856 when William Robertson and James Guthrie Orchar took over the Wallace Foundry.