Members of the Harmony Society, who immigrated from Germany to America, began producing textiles from wool, cotton and linen soon after arriving here in 1804.

But it was 18-year-old Gertrude Rapp, the only grandchild of George Rapp, the group's founder, who began teaching the Harmonists how to raise silkworms, create dyes and weave silk in the late 1830s.

"She was regarded nationally and internationally as one of the leaders of the silk industry," said Emily Lapisardi, who portrays Gertrude Rapp as part of a silk production demonstration at Old Economy Village in Ambridge on next Sunday.

Admission to the historical site is free that day, and the event marks the 200th anniversary of Gertrude Rapp's birth.

"She was an extraordinary woman," added Miss Lapisardi, 25, a musician from Shadyside.

Miss Lapisardi learned of Gertrude Rapp six years ago when Chuck Krepley, a violinist, invited her to perform Harmonist music at a Christmas concert at Old Economy. Her interest was piqued because Rapp also sang and played the piano, talents that she also possesses.

"I wanted to perform the music that she performed. As I started to research her, I realized there was so much more to the story than Gertrude the musician," the singer said.

Since then, Miss Lapisardi has written a paper about this historical figure, who, along with 15 to 20 young women, worked in the society's silk house and raised about 1 million silkworms each year. Men in the community also raised worms, wove silk and promoted the textiles to the outside world.

"In my portrayal of Gertrude, I have, to the best of my ability, re-created the silk manufacturing process. I raised worms. I learned to reel the cocoons. I learned to weave," she said, adding that unreeling the cocoons entails unwinding the thread to make silk yarn.

Silkworms are the competitive eaters of the insect world; they have to be fed leaves from white mulberry trees eight times a day.

While no identifiable photographs exist of Gertrude Rapp, she was described as tall, thin and quite pretty. Just before she turned 4, her father, Johannes, died.

Gertrude Rapp possessed enormous creativity and business acumen, Miss Lapisardi said.

"She corresponded with other people who made silk," read published silk journals and experimented with dye recipes. The society produced silks with floral or geometric patterns as well as ribbons.

Published accounts at the time stated that the silks produced by the Harmonists "were equal in quality to the best imported goods from Europe," she said. "We still have a lot of those silks, and they are absolutely stunning."

A meticulous record keeper who noted transactions, dye recipes and the health of the worms, Gertrude Rapp also possessed business acumen and creativity.

"But she was also an artist, and the silks reveal that. They made some gorgeous scarves. They also made Sunday clothes for every member of the Harmony Society," Miss Lapisardi.

"It's fascinating to me that these people, who were basically very plain, had these extremely rich Sunday clothes," she said. "Your average American would not have owned much silk at all."