Waggas and Wool

Australia's National Wool Museum (NWM) in the port city of Geelong, Victoria holds a unique and nationally significant collection that traces the continent's long and fascinating of history of wool, fibre and textiles from 1797 to today.

Consisting of over 9,000 objects, including textiles, archives, objects, artwork, photographs and machinery, it presents the story from a variety of perspectives, including First Peoples, the clothing, wool and textile industries, cultural life and social history. There is also a particular focus on how these artefacts relate to the history and heritage of its home city, a place so synonymous with wool and the wool industry that it was known for many years as the 'wool centre of the world'. 

Harry Walter Hewitt Wilton Patchwork Wagga National Wool Museum Collection Geelong

NMW also home to one of Australia’s largest and most significant public collections of heritage quilts and waggas.

Waggas are a distinctly Australian quilt, traditionally made from multiple layers of jute bags, calico sacks, recycled clothing, blankets and fabric scraps. The term is believed to derive from the 'Wagga Lily' flour sacks produced by the Murrumbidgee Co-operative Flour Mill in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales during the 1890s. Born of necessity and the desperate times of the 1890s to 1930s, the wagga was the bushman’s blanket, made by pioneering men from old jute wheat sacks and wool bales to create a sturdy, wind-resistant bedroll for cold nights on the road. Later - again for reasons of poverty and the quintessential Australian 'make do' culture - women began making domestic waggas for family use.

Wagga Irene Isabel Pitt by National wool Collection Geelong Australia

The Museum's heritage quilts range from intricately pieced crazy quilts stitched with elaborate herringbone and feather embroidery, to beautifully crafted patchwork quilts made by Country Women’s Association members as cherished group endeavours. Each one, whether humble or elaborate, tells a deeply personal story of the hands that made it and the families it warmed.

Judy Turner Quilt National Wool Museum Geelong Victoria

Our holiday to the Australasian Quilt Convention 2027 includes a fascinating visit to NMW.