Cultures & Communities

Furniture, cooking wares, clothing, works of art, and many other kinds of artifacts are part of what knit people into communities and cultures. The Museum’s collections feature artifacts from European Americans, Latinos, Arab Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, African Americans, Gypsies, Jews, and Christians, both Catholics and Protestants. The objects range from ceramic face jugs made by enslaved African Americans in South Carolina to graduation robes and wedding gowns. The holdings also include artifacts associated with education, such as teaching equipment, textbooks, and two complete schoolrooms. Uniforms, insignia, and other objects represent a wide variety of civic and voluntary organizations, including youth and fraternal groups, scouting, police forces, and firefighters.

Unknown artist, about 1868“Drawing made by a Kiowa Indian”(Title given by collector Dr. Edward Palmer)Media: Pencil on paperThis Kiowa Indian drawing was likely prepared and collected in 1868 at the Kiowa and Comanche Agency in present-day Oklahoma.
Description
Unknown artist, about 1868
“Drawing made by a Kiowa Indian”
(Title given by collector Dr. Edward Palmer)
Media: Pencil on paper
This Kiowa Indian drawing was likely prepared and collected in 1868 at the Kiowa and Comanche Agency in present-day Oklahoma. Non-Indians were known to have offered paper and illustrating equipment to Plains Indians as early as the 1830s. The drawing displays a Kiowa warrior’s head and neck ornament (possibly a peace medal), and his leg sashes.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1880
ca 1869
ca 1882
original artist
unknown
ID Number
2008.0175.51
catalog number
2008.0175.051
accession number
2008.0175
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This silver plated speaking trumpet was presented to James F. Gaffney and dates from the mid to late 19th century. The trumpet has a plain surface with beaded bands around the mouthpiece and upper and lower bulges in the trumpet. There is an egg and dart pattern stamped around the bell of the horn. Two gilded eagles’ heads are attached to the trumpet holding rings in their beaks that are connected by a braided purple cord with tassels on the end. There are decorative incisions around an engraving that reads “Presented to James F. Gaffney by his Friends for his Good qualities as a Fireman and his Virtues as a citizen.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1860
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0822
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0822
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This silver-plated speaking trumpet was presented by the Harry Howard Hose Company of New York City to its last volunteer foreman in 1865. The trumpet has an engraved floral design with several raised floral patterns throughout. There is a cartouche on the bell that contains an engraved image of a hose reel. A cartouche along the shaft contains the inscription “Presented to Garrett Bell foreman of Harry Howard Hose Co. No. 55 by the members Jan. 1st 1865.” A braided blue cord with tassels is attached to the trumpet through protruding rings. The Harry Howard Hose Company, formed in 1853, was named for the famous Chief Engineer of the New York City volunteers. Garrett Bell was the last foreman of the company when it disbanded as part of the creation of the paid municipal city system in 1865.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1865
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0900
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0900
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This metal trumpet was presented to the Lafayette Hose Company around 1865. There are engraved designs on the trumpet’s shaft and bell, and three medallions attached to the bell with one in the trumpet’s shaft. The medallions around the bell include two profile images of helmeted Greek or Roman figures and a classical front-facing female. A medallion on the shaft has a profile image of a helmeted Greek or Roman figure. Two eagles’ heads protrude from the shaft with a place in their beaks for rings. There is an inscription in the center of the shaft that reads “Presented to the LaFayette Hose Company Oct. 16, 1865 by their friends [illegible].”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1865
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0898
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0898
The backs of two large, matched sperm whale teeth were sawn off, and the front sides were scrimshawed freehand and mounted in an unusual glass-top wooden display case.
Description
The backs of two large, matched sperm whale teeth were sawn off, and the front sides were scrimshawed freehand and mounted in an unusual glass-top wooden display case. The tooth on the left displays the stern of a large sailing ship flying an American flag, sailing away from the viewer. At the top are the numbers “18”, matched by the numbers “65” in the same place on the right side tooth. The bow of a large ship engraved on the right tooth is sailing toward the viewer, and it is almost certainly a different view of the same ship on the other tooth. Above and below the main image of the ship on the sea are matching rope and floral motifs.
The sailing ship depicted is a merchant vessel, as shown by the absence of a warship’s guns or the try works characteristic of a whaler. It appears to be a packet ship designed to carry mail, passengers and cargo together, judging from the number of lifeboats over the side on davits.
Below the teeth is a small bone plaque engraved in cursive “Dr. Charles E. Smith”. There was a Dr. Charles E. Smith in Whitesboro, NY during the Civil War, but the 1865 connection between Dr. Smith and a ship or a piece of framed scrimshaw artwork is unknown. The village of Whitesboro is near the precise middle of the state of New York, about the same distance from Long Island Sound and the Great Lakes. The nearest body of water was the Erie Canal passing through the village.
Scrimshaw began in the late 18th or early 19th century as the art of carving whale bone and ivory aboard whale ships. The crew on whalers had plenty of leisure time between sighting and chasing whales, and the hard parts of whales were readily available on voyages that could last up to four years.
In its simplest form, a tooth was removed from the lower jaw of a sperm whale and the surface was prepared by scraping and sanding until it was smooth. The easiest way to begin an etching was to smooth a print over the tooth, prick the outline of the image with a needle and then “connect-the-dots” once the paper was removed. This allowed even unskilled craftsmen to create fine carvings. Some sailors were skilled enough to etch their drawings freehand. After the lines were finished, they were filled in with lamp black or sometimes colored pigments.
Scrimshaw could be decorative, like simple sperm whale teeth, or they could be useful, as in ivory napkin rings, corset busks (stiffeners), swifts for winding yarn or pie crimpers. The sailor’s hand-carved scrimshaw was then given to loved ones back on shore as souvenirs of the hard and lonely life aboard long and dangerous voyages.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1865
ID Number
1978.0052.03
accession number
1978.0052
catalog number
1978.52.3
During the American Civil War, Gen. Benjamin F. Butler so appreciated the heroic actions of African American soldiers under his command at the 1864 battles of Fort Harrison and Fort Gilmer that he commissioned a special medal for them. Designed by Anthony C.
Description
During the American Civil War, Gen. Benjamin F. Butler so appreciated the heroic actions of African American soldiers under his command at the 1864 battles of Fort Harrison and Fort Gilmer that he commissioned a special medal for them. Designed by Anthony C. Paquet and realized in silver by Tiffany, the U.S. Colored Troops medal had no official status. After General Butler was relieved of his command in 1865, the 300 U.S. Colored Troops who had received the medals were forbidden to wear them on their uniforms.
Location
Currently not on view
commissioner
Butler, Benjamin Franklin
maker
Tiffany & Co.
ID Number
1985.0612.01
catalog number
1985.0612.01
accession number
1985.0612
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This silver plated speaking trumpet was presented to the Washington Fire Engine Company by the Jovial Club of Paterson, New Jersey in 1860. The trumpet is engraved with ivy and flowers around the entire trumpet and has an inscription inside an oval cartouche framed by tree branches. This inscription reads, "Presented by the Jovial Club of Paterson, N.J. to Washington Fire Engine Company No. 3, February 22, 1860." The braided orange cord with tassels is attached to the trumpet by rings in the shape of fire hats. In September of 1862 many members of the Washington Fire Engine Company formed Company A in the 25th Regiment of the New Jersey Volunteers.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1860
ID Number
2005.0233.0823
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0823
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This brass trumpet is plated with silver and painted gold. There are three oval medallions around the bell, each with a profile image of a Grecian figure’s head. The shaft of the horn features a profile bust of George Washington framed in an oval cartouche. There is an inscription on the shaft that reads “Presented to Trenton Hose Co. No. 1 of Trenton, N.J. by Empire Association Lynn Feb 4th 1869” that is framed in an oval. A braided red, white, and blue cord is attached to the trumpet through two rings.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1869
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0850
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0850
Date made
ca 1865
patentee
Cushing & White
maker
Cushing & White
ID Number
CL.65.0968
accession number
256396
catalog number
65.0968
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This brass trumpet was presented to Henry K. Woodruff by the Independence Hose Company of New York in 1862. The trumpet is divided into three sections with two rings that allow for a cord to be attached. The trumpet bears an inscription that reads “Presented by Independence Hose Company, No. 3, New York, to Foreman Henry K. Woodruff 1862.” The Independence Hose Company No. 3 was organized on November 19, 1832. Woodruff was the foreman of the Independence Hose Company from 1862 until the company disbanded in 1865.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1862
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0829
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0829
Unknown artist, about 1869“Drawing made by a Comanche Indian”[Title given by collector Dr. Edward Palmer]Media: Colored inks on paperThis drawing of a Comanche warrior was likely prepared and collected in 1869 at the Kiowa and Comanche Agency in present-day Oklahoma.
Description
Unknown artist, about 1869
“Drawing made by a Comanche Indian”
[Title given by collector Dr. Edward Palmer]
Media: Colored inks on paper
This drawing of a Comanche warrior was likely prepared and collected in 1869 at the Kiowa and Comanche Agency in present-day Oklahoma. The artist’s representation of a warrior on horseback follows a tradition of pictographic imagery which presents the subject on one plane without the illusion of depth. Here both of the warrior’s legs and leg sashes are imaged on the viewer’s side of the horse.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1880
ca 1868
ca 1882
ca 1868
original artist
unknown
ID Number
2008.0175.50
catalog number
2008.0175.050
accession number
2008.0175
This portable scale was made by Chen Shengtai in Guangdong Province, China, during the mid-1800s. The California gold rush prompted thousands of Chinese laborers to seek their fortune, and many brought their own weights and scales with them.
Description
This portable scale was made by Chen Shengtai in Guangdong Province, China, during the mid-1800s. The California gold rush prompted thousands of Chinese laborers to seek their fortune, and many brought their own weights and scales with them. This scale is a steelyard-type balance that uses a pivot point and counterweight moved along the arm on the arm to weigh the substance on the pan. It consists of a rod marked with several weight points, several pivot points to hold on to, a counterweight to move along the rod, and a pan attached to the rod with four strings. The scale could be disassembled and stored inside a small, wooden, paddle-shaped case.
date made
1840 - 1860
ID Number
CL.65.1373
accession number
280280
catalog number
65.1373
The Copp Collection contains a variety of household objects that the Copp family of Connecticut used from around 1700 until the mid-1800s.
Description
The Copp Collection contains a variety of household objects that the Copp family of Connecticut used from around 1700 until the mid-1800s. Part of the Puritan Great Migration from England to Boston, the family eventually made their home in New London County, Connecticut, where their textiles, clothes, utensils, ceramics, books, bibles, and letters provide a vivid picture of daily life. More of the collection from the Division of Home and Community Life can be viewed by searching accession number 28810.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1860-04-05
originator (author or composer, etc.)
Copp, Jr., Samuel
originator (author, etc.)
Copp, Jr., Samuel
ID Number
DL.006873.095
catalog number
6873.095
accession number
28810
This handmade wooden trunk has a hinged wooden lid, a metal keyhole plate, and rope handles on the sides. The top and front of the trunk are decorated with hand-painted red and white tulips and roses.
Description
This handmade wooden trunk has a hinged wooden lid, a metal keyhole plate, and rope handles on the sides. The top and front of the trunk are decorated with hand-painted red and white tulips and roses. The initials “ABAD” are painted in white scrollwork above the date “1867” on the face of the trunk. The trunk was found around 1910 in the attic of the donor’s grandparents in Jamestown, New York. An elderly Swedish couple, who had been renting the upstairs, left the trunk behind when they moved out of the house.
Although the Swedes who came to the United States with their belongings in this trunk are not known, they were part of a mass migration out of Sweden that began in the 1860s. A combination of population pressure, limited agricultural land, and political and religious unrest had driven many Swedes to the United States since the 1840s. But disease and famine beginning in the late 1860s forced many more to leave Sweden. Between 1868 and 1914, more than a million Swedes emigrated, mostly to America. After arriving in New York, many went west to farmland in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Swedes also settled in urban areas such as Chicago and Minneapolis.
Date made
1867
ID Number
2002.0362.01
catalog number
2002.0362.01
accession number
2002.0362
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This silver plated horn was presented to the Delaware Engine Company by the Paulding Assembly, likely the town government of Paulding, New Jersey, in 1865. Floral patterns are engraved and in low relief around the trumpet. In the center of the trumpet there is an inscription that reads “Presented/ to the Delaware Engine Company No. 4/ by the Paulding Assembly/ Oct. 16, 1865.” Two rings are gripped in an eagle’s beak that would allow a cord to be attached to the trumpet.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1865
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0837
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0837
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations.
Description (Brief)
As more American volunteer fire fighting companies began to form during the late 18th century, a need emerged for better organized efforts in combating conflagrations. Engineers and officers would use “speaking trumpets” to amplify their voices over the noise and commotion of a fire scene to direct the company in effectively fighting the blaze. Two trumpet variants are reflected in the collection: plain and functional “working” trumpets that were actively used at fires, and highly decorated “presentation” trumpets. Presentation trumpets were awarded to firefighters in honor of their service, or between fire companies during visits, competitions, and musters.
This silver plated trumpet was presented to the Neptune Engine Company by the citizens of Paterson, New Jersey through Josiah P. Doremus in 1867. The trumpet has three sections. The lower bell bears an engraved image of a steam powered fire engine. The center portion is an inscription framed by engraved decorative foliage that reads “Presented to Neptune Engine Company No. 2 by Citizens of Patterson, N.J. through Josiah P. Doremus. Sept 2nd 1867.” The upper section has a variety of decorative engravings. Josiah Doremus was a prominent businessman in Paterson, New Jersey during the middle of the 19th century.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1867
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0825
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0825
This large panbone, or section of the back of a sperm whale’s jaw, served as the canvas for a whaleman’s freehand drawing on two levels. In the center of the upper level is a three-masted whaleship with painted gun ports along its sides.
Description
This large panbone, or section of the back of a sperm whale’s jaw, served as the canvas for a whaleman’s freehand drawing on two levels. In the center of the upper level is a three-masted whaleship with painted gun ports along its sides. Merchant vessels often did this, to look like powerful warships from a distance and thus protect themselves from pirates or other predators. The ship’s vertical whaleboat davits are empty, and the ship is sailing towards its little fleet of four whaleboats in various stages of harpooning a pod of five whales. Four of the whales are ‘blowing,’ or exhaling through the blowholes on top of their heads. One of the whales already has two harpoons sticking out of its back and is towing a whaleboat on a ‘Nantucket sleigh ride.' Behind the ship on the left is an old-fashioned two-masted topsail schooner sailing in the opposite direction. The sea in the foreground is calm, and the scene is placed against a shoreline of low, rolling hills. Below is another pair of sailing ships: a two-masted square-rigged brig follows a brigantine with a square-rigged foremast and a fore-and-aft main. Although engraved by the same very talented artist, the two levels of illustrations do not appear to be related. Judging from the extremely detailed and technical rigs and sails of all the ships, the scrimshaw artist may have been a sailmaker or rigger.
Scrimshaw began in the late 18th or early 19th century as the art of carving whale bone and ivory aboard whale ships. The crew on whalers had plenty of leisure time between sighting and chasing whales, and the hard parts of whales were readily available on voyages that could last up to four years.
In its simplest form, a tooth was removed from the lower jaw of a sperm whale and the surface was prepared by scraping and sanding until it was smooth. The easiest way to begin an etching was to smooth a print over the tooth, prick the outline of the image with a needle and then “connect-the-dots” once the paper was removed. This allowed even unskilled craftsmen to create fine carvings. Some sailors were skilled enough to etch their drawings freehand. After the lines were finished, they were filled in with lamp black or sometimes colored pigments.
Scrimshaw could be decorative, like simple sperm whale teeth, or they could be useful, as in ivory napkin rings, corset busks (stiffeners), swifts for winding yarn or pie crimpers. The sailor’s hand-carved scrimshaw was then given to loved ones back on shore as souvenirs of the hard and lonely life aboard long and dangerous voyages.
date made
mid 1800s
1840 - 1860
ID Number
DL.057605B
catalog number
57605B
accession number
2009.0206
Samuel W. Lowe of Philadelphia invented the Lowe printing press, an unusual conical cylinder press patented in 1856. Like Adams's Cottage printing press, it did not include a frisket and included an automatic tympan.
Description
Samuel W. Lowe of Philadelphia invented the Lowe printing press, an unusual conical cylinder press patented in 1856. Like Adams's Cottage printing press, it did not include a frisket and included an automatic tympan. The rights for the press were sold in 1858 to Joseph Watson, who marketed both presses in Boston and Philadelphia.
The Lowe printing press does not appear to have been as heavily advertised as the Adams, although the company notes that we have sold many presses … to druggists … in this country and in other lands. Every boy and business man seems to be having one.
As for portability, the Lowe was more than a third lighter than the Adams, ranging from between 12 and 120 pounds as compared to Adams's press at between 100 and 400 pounds. The Lowe used a simpler frame and relatively thin castings.
date made
ca 1860
patent date
1856
maker
Lowe, Samuel W.
ID Number
1988.0650.03
accession number
1988.0650
catalog number
1988.0650.03
Aaron W. Hempleman from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, received a U.S. patent for an improved school desk. Patent no. 177835 was issued on May 23, 1876.This model has metal legs and feet and a desk that consists of light and dark wooden slats.
Description
Aaron W. Hempleman from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, received a U.S. patent for an improved school desk. Patent no. 177835 was issued on May 23, 1876.
This model has metal legs and feet and a desk that consists of light and dark wooden slats. The metal sides feature a design, adding visual interest to the desk. The desk is attached to the backrest, and although the seat and backrest are curved, there is no lower back support. There is a storage shelf underneath the desktop that remains stationary. There is an extra bracket attached to the side of the desk.
Aaron W. Hempleman joined the firm originated by John P. Allen and George H. Grant. In 1876, he and Grant formed Grant & Hempleman to manufacture church and school furniture.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1867
patent date
1867-07-23
inventor
Dibble, Fernando J.
ID Number
DL.65.0496
catalog number
65.0496
patent number
67,107
accession number
249602
Colored print of Scottish Games. Proof before letters. A ring of spectators, many dressed in kilts with bagpipes, surrounding participants engaged in a variety of games on an open field. Tents in background.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Colored print of Scottish Games. Proof before letters. A ring of spectators, many dressed in kilts with bagpipes, surrounding participants engaged in a variety of games on an open field. Tents in background.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1868
publisher
Kelly & Whitehill
maker
Giles, John Lawrence
printer
Hart, Charles
ID Number
DL.60.2404
catalog number
60.2404
accession number
228146
Even whalemen with little or no artistic talent could carve highly detailed scenes, through use of the pinprick technique. In this method, a picture was cut from a contemporary magazine and then pasted or dampened to stick to the polished surface of a sperm whale's tooth.
Description
Even whalemen with little or no artistic talent could carve highly detailed scenes, through use of the pinprick technique. In this method, a picture was cut from a contemporary magazine and then pasted or dampened to stick to the polished surface of a sperm whale's tooth. A sharp pin was then pushed through the lines of the image, which was then removed. This left lines of dots; when these were connected with engraved lines, they formed a copy of the original picture. Most commonly, lamp black (soot) was then rubbed into the engraved lines to make them stand out from the background of the tooth, although colored pigments like those on this tooth also could be applied for variety. The high fashion of this lady's garments bracket a date just a few years after the end of the Civil War.
Date made
1865 - 1869
ID Number
DL.374502
catalog number
374502
accession number
136263
The bony substance from the mouths of whales known as baleen is formed of keratin, like human hair and nails. It hangs in long, parallel sheets from the upper jaws of the blue, right, and minke whales, as well as other lesser-known species.
Description
The bony substance from the mouths of whales known as baleen is formed of keratin, like human hair and nails. It hangs in long, parallel sheets from the upper jaws of the blue, right, and minke whales, as well as other lesser-known species. Its hairy fringe filters food from seawater.
Dried out, baleen’s strength and flexibility made it ideal for buggy whips, corset busks, and umbrella ribs before the advent of plastic. A whale’s bone could actually be worth more than its oil. This man’s large umbrella has a wooden shaft, heavy hinged baleen ribs made in short sections, and an ivory handle. Marked “G. Hobbs, Barre,” it belonged to the donor’s grandfather, who lived in Barre, Massachusetts, until around the end of the Civil War.
Date made
ca 1835-1865
user
Hobbs, George
ID Number
AG.169283.01
accession number
169283
catalog number
169283.01
After some species of whales were killed, their carcasses sank. Other species, like the right whale, floated.
Description
After some species of whales were killed, their carcasses sank. Other species, like the right whale, floated. A whale that sank represented a major loss to the whaleship crews, who had risked their lives to capture the creatures.
To prevent this sort of loss and maximize a whaleship’s efficiency, Thomas Roys of the whaling port of Southampton, on Long Island, N.Y., patented an apparatus for “Raising Dead Whales From the Bottom of the Sea.” There is little evidence that many American whalers tried the device or that it found widespread use in the industry.
Date made
1862
patentee
Roys, Thomas W.
ID Number
AG.332326
catalog number
332326
accession number
94380
patent number
35476
This large alkaline-glazed stoneware jar was made in 1862 by David Drake, an enslaved black potter working on Lewis Miles’ plantation pottery in the Edgefield District of South Carolina.
Description
This large alkaline-glazed stoneware jar was made in 1862 by David Drake, an enslaved black potter working on Lewis Miles’ plantation pottery in the Edgefield District of South Carolina. In a state that outlawed literacy among people who were enslaved, Dave defiantly proclaimed his ability to read and write by signing his name and sometimes inscribing poetry on the stoneware vessels he made.
One of the most distinctive aspects of ante-bellum Edgefield was the presence of a large number of skilled people who were enslaved working as potters. Edgefield was one of only two areas in the United States known to have relied heavily on enslaved labor to manufacture utilitarian stoneware in large-scale potteries. Edgefield potteries furnished the large local plantations with the vessels needed for the preparation and storage of food for the planters and for the thousands of enslaved people working as agricultural and skilled laborers.
While some of the enslaved people performed unskilled jobs in the potteries—such as digging and preparing clay and loading kilns—most were “turners,” performing the highly skilled work of forming ware on a potter’s wheel. At least 40 enslaved potters and pottery laborers are known to have worked in potteries in Edgefield between about 1815 and 1880. Some scholars believe over a hundred more may some day be identified.
David Drake is the only enslaved potter known to have signed and dated his work. He was educated by his first enslaver, stoneware maker and newspaper editor Abner Landrum, and may have worked at Landrum’s newspaper, the Edgefield Hive, as a typesetter. When Landrum left the Edgefield area in 1831, Dave was sold to Lewis Miles, another large-scale pottery owner.
Dave was a master potter, regularly producing massive storage jars and jugs that required enormous skill and strength. About twenty surviving Dave pieces are inscribed with Dave’s original two line poems—wonderful and sometimes cryptic ruminations on topics as diverse as pots, love, money, spirituality, life as a slave, and the afterlife. The poems reflect Dave’s intelligence, creativity, and wit.
The poem on this jar, “I made this jar all of cross, If you don[’]t repent you will be lost,” may be a reference to the Bible, Acts 2: 14-42, Peter’s speech at Pentecost in the temple of Herod at Jerusalem. This jar, the last known poem piece, emphasizes the importance of religion and the afterlife in the daily life of many slaves. John Michael Vlach highlights this jar in The Afro-American Tradition in Decorative Arts, conjecturing that its “highly poignant verse” reflects "Dave’s combined feelings about slavery and religion.” On the reverse side, the jar is inscribed “May 3, 1862/ LM Dave.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1862-05-03
maker
Drake, David
ID Number
1996.0344.01
catalog number
1996.0344.01
accession number
1996.0344

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