Beaming bakers. Knights in armor. Singing chickens; a solemn Sphinx; and even a corn cob or two, outfitted with airplane wings. What gives? Well, one and all are examples of feed sack art. Those colorful logos on cotton feed sacks provided a healthy dose of Americana from just before the turn of the 20th century well into the 1950s. Cloth feed sacks were the mid-1800s successors to the wooden barrels that had previously handled storage chores. Industrial sewing machines now made it possible to sew reliable seams. Although dubbed feed sacks, the bags were put to work carrying plenty besides animal feed. Among the contents: seeds, flour, sugar, tobacco, bath salts, corn meal, and even ammunition. While early bags were often burlap or jute, by the 1890s, cotton was king. Cotton bags were more pliable, cheaper to produce, and reusable. Actually repurpose-able is a better description. No homemaker intended to refill her empty Blue Feather Potatoes bag with more potatoes. But with a good washing, and by picking out those sturdy seams, there were plenty of other uses for that good cotton, and there was plenty to use. The standard 100-pound feed sack, when laid flat, measured approximately 37 by 43 inches. With enough bags, there was soon more than enough material on hand to sew up a wide variety of household necessities, from dish towels and bed sheets to new curtains and quilt backings. Just about the only thing early white cotton bags were less than desirable for was clothing. Initially, the logos and product information inked on the bags was there to stay. The only hope for removal was dousing them with bleach or other sure-fire home remedies, before engaging in some vigorous scrubbing. If that didnt do the trick, printed info was sometimes left as is. After all, who would see it? Only the disgruntled little girl heading off to school, knowing that her new set of drawers had 100 lbs. net weight plastered across the posterior. (Patterned feed bags, which came into vogue for clothing use in the 1920s, solved the problem. Their labels and logos were either water-soluble ink or on easily removable tags. This led to a surge in dresses, play clothes, aprons, and other types of feed sack clothing during the Depression and WWII years.) By the early 1940s, over 30 companies were churning out feed sacks nationwide. There was an ongoing effort to come up with distinctive, uniquely-themed logos, sure to drum up buyer interest. This explains the warbling poultry and flying corncobs on some bags, which vied for attention with more traditional illustrations of farms and countrysides. For todays collectors, accumulating feed sacks requires pre-planning. As noted, theyre huge. Unless you have plenty of room to hang them (say, in an empty barn), much of your collection could remain unseen. But if its just the feed sack logo youre interested in, an attractive and workable alternative is to frame and display just the logo portion. As for the remainder of the bag, theres no need to try stuffing it into the frame, or cutting it up to get at the logo. As feed sack prices can range from $10-$50, depending on condition, put away those scissors! The answer to the dilemma is as close as your camera or phone. Just photograph the logos, then print them for display. This allows for size adjustment of the image to fit the frame. It also offers the option of touching up any undesired deterioration. The result is an eye-catching display, true to the source, but with the original feed sacks remaining intact. With the introduction of equally sturdy, yet much less expensive paper and burlap bags in the 1950s, the use of cotton feed sacks declined. Their logos, however, continue to hold a nostalgic appeal for todays collectors. They hearken back to a simpler, more peaceful time. A time when chickens could sing and corncobs could fly. Original feed sack photos courtesy of Shari Aken. Photo Associate: Hank Kuhlmann. Donald-Brian Johnson is the co-author of numerous books on design and collectibles, including Postwar Pop, a collection of his columns. Please address inquiries to: donaldbrian@msn.com.