Sailors Reused Rope

A little Manila rope when a long way

Sustainability begins at the beginning

True sustainable living begins at the point of sale: purchasing items that can be reused and that will biodegrade after use. While a focus on reusing, recycling, and refilling is important, rethinking what we buy in the first-place matters most. Throughout the 19th century, Americans used products that were natural and regenerative.

During the Age of Sail, ship builders and riggers used hemp and manila for most of the lines on their vessels. Both hemp and manila are natural plant fibers.

my sketch of an Abaca plant; traditional sailors often used manila rope, a natural fiber that came from the Abaca plant

Manila, for example, comes from the Abaca tree in the Philippines. Fibers were stripped from the small tree and then twisted together to make yarns, which were then twisted in the other direction to make strands, which were then twisted in the other direction to make rope.