I am looking for information about an unusual coat.  It is calf length, 
plain design, long-sleeves, corduroy collar.  The odd part is that it 
appears to be coated with a black substance similar to creosote.  It is 
stiff in cooler temps and get more pliable as it warms.  The owner stated 
that her father worked as a painter, but doesn't recall him ever wearing it 
for such.  Is this a predecessor to "oilskin" dusters?  If so, can anyone 
tell me what substance they treated the material with?  And then lastly, if 
any of you have any experience with this kind of object can you give some 
advice as to how the owner should preserve it.

Thank you,

Milissa Brooks-Ojibway
Registrar, St. Louis County Historical Society
Duluth, MN
[log in to unmask]
www.thehistorypeople.org

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