Cultures & Communities

Cleveland Many Peoples One Language Poster

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.

Camera-ready comic art drawing for Short Ribs

This pen-and-ink drawing prepared for the Short Ribs comic strip shows the wedding of Gert and a younger, attractive man who appears to have been the victim of a spell.Frank O’Neal (1921-1986) sold his first cartoon to the Saturday Evening Post in 1950.
Description (Brief)
This pen-and-ink drawing prepared for the Short Ribs comic strip shows the wedding of Gert and a younger, attractive man who appears to have been the victim of a spell.
Frank O’Neal (1921-1986) sold his first cartoon to the Saturday Evening Post in 1950. In 1958 he debuted his Short Ribs comic strip and continued to draw the strip until 1973. His assistant, Frank Hill, then took over the strip and O’Neal spent the rest of his career creating advertising art.
Short Ribs (1958-1982) was a strip without a regular cast or a continuous setting. With some frequency, however, the strip took place in a castle in Medieval Europe. Other locations included Ancient Egypt or the American West. The storylines regularly made references to 20th-century events.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1966-04-17
graphic artist
O'Neal, Frank
publisher
NEA, Inc.
ID Number
GA.22568
catalog number
22568
accession number
277502

Scrimshaw Walrus Tusk, mid-20th Century

This intricately carved walrus tusk was carved for the tourist trade. It is not traditional scrimshaw, in that it is not whale ivory carved aboard a whaleship in the 19th century.
Description
This intricately carved walrus tusk was carved for the tourist trade. It is not traditional scrimshaw, in that it is not whale ivory carved aboard a whaleship in the 19th century. However, it is engraved marine ivory depicting marine hunting activity and marine mammals, so it is included among the arts associated with scrimshaw.
It contains multiple scenes of Lapland daily activities, surrounding a western-style cribbage board. On the obverse, two women are riding in a wooden sleigh drawn by a single reindeer or caribou, with another reindeer tethered behind on a rope. In the center is a deeply carved and shaded scrollwork motif frames a cribbage board, in the center of which a pair of polar bears flank a dead walrus. To the right are two sparring reindeer with their antlers entangled. The reverse has a scene of two hunters dragging dead seals along the ice; in front of them is a rider on a dogsled drawn by five dogs. The quality, scale and lithographic quality of the carving clearly indicate the hand of a professional scrimshaw artist working for the tourist trade.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
AF.59396-N
catalog number
59396-N
accession number
260075

Engraved woodblock of "Marble Canyon"

This engraved woodblock of "Marble Canyon” was prepared by engraver Edward Bookhout (1844-1886) and the Government Printing Office in Washington, D.C.; the print was published in 1875 as Figure 26 (p.77) in Report of the Exploration of the Colorado River of the West and Its Tribu
Description
This engraved woodblock of "Marble Canyon” was prepared by engraver Edward Bookhout (1844-1886) and the Government Printing Office in Washington, D.C.; the print was published in 1875 as Figure 26 (p.77) in Report of the Exploration of the Colorado River of the West and Its Tributaries. Explored in 1869, 1870, 1871, and 1872, under the direction of the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution by John Wesley Powell (1834-1902). Thomas Moran (1837-1926) accompanied Powell on his expedition and drew the original image.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1875
1875
original artist
Moran, Thomas
publisher
Bureau of American Ethnology
printer
Government Printing Office
author
Powell, John Wesley
graphic artist
Bookhout, Edward
block maker
V. W. & Co.
ID Number
1980.0219.0259
catalog number
1980.0219.0259
accession number
1980.0219

Trotting Horse Weathervane

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1850-1899
ID Number
CL.65.0929
catalog number
65.0929
accession number
256396

Drawing made by a Kiowa Indian

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

Presentation Trumpet, "Robert Morris Hose Co."

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 used by the Robert Morris Hose Company, who served in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1837 to 1871. The bell of the trumpet is silver plated and there are three silver bands around the trumpet’s shaft. Two rings are attached to the trumpet’s shaft to allow for a cord to be strung from the trumpet. An inscription on the trumpet reads “Robt. Morris H. Co. 1st line.” Robert Morris was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a major financier of the Revolutionary War. It was a matter of pride and rivalry amongst the engine companies to be the company that put “first water” on the fire. No doubt the phrase “1st line” is meant to spur the foreman to be the first hose company on the fire scene to attach their hose, also known as a line, to a hydrant and then to an engine, thereby enabling the engine company to put first water on the fire.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th century
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0848
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0848

Speaking Trumpet

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 and pewter speaking trumpet was used during the 19th century. The brass trumpet has two flat pewter bands around the upper and lower portion of the shaft. Two rings hang from the side of the trumpet’s shaft. The rings would be strung with a cord to create a strap for the trumpet.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
unknown
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0884
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0884

Letter from Yale acknowledging enrollment at Harvard

Despite his large efforts to get into Yale University, Kinji ultimately chose to study at Harvard University. On October 25, 1945, he formally wrote Yale to withdraw his name from the applicants list.Currently not on view
Description
Despite his large efforts to get into Yale University, Kinji ultimately chose to study at Harvard University. On October 25, 1945, he formally wrote Yale to withdraw his name from the applicants list.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1945-10-29
ID Number
1986.3097.05
nonaccession number
1986.3097
catalog number
1986.3097.05

EmmyLou Harris

Working on assignment, Henry Horenstein photographed EmmyLou Harris (b. 1947) at her home. In the 1970s, Harris represented the generation of musicians who were influenced by traditional country, rock, and folk music.
Description
Working on assignment, Henry Horenstein photographed EmmyLou Harris (b. 1947) at her home. In the 1970s, Harris represented the generation of musicians who were influenced by traditional country, rock, and folk music. Over the years, Harris has had a profound impact on contemporary popular and country music.
Location
Currently not on view
negative
1980
print
2003
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2003.0169.034
accession number
2003.0169
catalog number
2003.0169.034

Picture postcard, "Mission San Luis Rey, California. Founded 1798"

This postcard view of Mission San Luis Rey was printed by the Detroit Publishing Company in about 1910, using a copyrighted photolithographic process called "Photostint."The Detroit Publishing Company, previously known as the Detroit Photographic Company, was first listed in Detr
Description (Brief)
This postcard view of Mission San Luis Rey was printed by the Detroit Publishing Company in about 1910, using a copyrighted photolithographic process called "Photostint."
The Detroit Publishing Company, previously known as the Detroit Photographic Company, was first listed in Detroit city directories in 1888. Its manager, William A. Livingstone, invited the famous landscape photographer William Henry Jackson to join the company as a partner in 1897. Jackson brought with him his own photographic images, which would be used by the company.
Mission San Luis Rey de Francia was the eighteenth of twenty-one Spanish Franciscan missions founded in California between 1769 and 1823. Its dedication ceremonies took place in 1798. The mission was founded to convert American Indians of the Kumeyaay and Luiseno tribes to Catholicism.
Today the mission serves as a parish church, a museum, and a retreat site.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1910
graphic artist
Detroit Publishing Co.
ID Number
1986.0639.2017
accession number
1986.0639
catalog number
1986.639.2017

Scrimshaw Sperm Whale’s Tooth

This carved sperm whale tooth is only engraved on one side, but it has an unusual subject. Instead of the more common full-rigged sailing ship, this tooth depicts a steamboat in profile moving from left to right.
Description
This carved sperm whale tooth is only engraved on one side, but it has an unusual subject. Instead of the more common full-rigged sailing ship, this tooth depicts a steamboat in profile moving from left to right. Below the vessel is engraved the legend “STEAMER RIGHT ARM”, which identifies the vessel as the wrecking tugboat RIGHT ARM. Measuring 135 ft. in length by 26.5 ft. beam (width), the ship was purpose built in New England in the early 1890s as a wrecker, or salvage vessel. These uncommon vessels helped to refloat grounded or stranded ships, or recovered useful parts from a ship that was wrecked. The forward deckhouse contained a powerful steam windlass and several tons of 2-in. chain, and the pumps were so strong that the ship could pump coal--as well as water--from damaged ships. The RIGHT ARM had the capability to support divers as well, with dive gear, air compressors and special equipment.
The RIGHT ARM is best known as the salvage ship for the infamous wreck of the American warship USS MAINE in Havana harbor, Cuba, an early event in the Spanish-American War. The RIGHT ARM recovered some of the MAINE’s artillery; the ship’s safe containing ca. $25,000; valuable chalices from the chaplain’s stateroom, and sailors’ bodies from the colossal explosion on 15 February 1898 that sank the warship.
Although this tooth was not carved by a whaler during the classical Age of Sail, it still represents the latter-day art of scrimshaw through its style, material and treatment.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
DL.65.1135
catalog number
65.1135
accession number
256396

Scrimshaw Walrus Tusk, 1854

This long, sharp walrus tusk tip has two whales engraved on its sides. On one side is a sperm whale, with its mouth wide open displaying its characteristic teeth in the lower jaw.
Description
This long, sharp walrus tusk tip has two whales engraved on its sides. On one side is a sperm whale, with its mouth wide open displaying its characteristic teeth in the lower jaw. Beneath it is the inscription: “LONG IS.” The other side has a large baleen or right whale, with the inscription “THo 1854 WILLETS” carved below. Baleen whales lack teeth and filter their food through hundreds of long, thin, flexible baleen plates. Thomas Willets was probably a crewman on an 1854 sealing or whaling voyage out of Long Island, a region in New York known for its whaling industry. In the 19th century, the Willets family was widespread and well known in the New York area.
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
1854
ID Number
1978.0052.11
accession number
1978.0052
catalog number
1978.52.11

Carl and Pearl Butler

Pearl Butler accepts a song request from a young fan. Pearl (1927-1998) and Carl Butler (1927-1992) were part of the honky-tonk and bluegrass music movements before World War II.
Description
Pearl Butler accepts a song request from a young fan. Pearl (1927-1998) and Carl Butler (1927-1992) were part of the honky-tonk and bluegrass music movements before World War II. After their 1962 hit, "Don't Let Me Cross Over," the Butlers became one of the most popular male-female vocal teams in country music.
Location
Currently not on view
negative
1973
print
2003
maker
Horenstein, Henry
ID Number
2003.0169.076
accession number
2003.0169
catalog number
2003.0169.076

Evacuee Center Regulations, Evacuation Notice

This Relocation Notice documents the heavily restricted life that internees had behind barbed wire. Fresno Assembly Center was in use from May 6 to October 30, 1942, with a peak population of 5,120.Currently not on view
Description
This Relocation Notice documents the heavily restricted life that internees had behind barbed wire. Fresno Assembly Center was in use from May 6 to October 30, 1942, with a peak population of 5,120.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1942-07-23
ID Number
1986.3118.04
nonaccession number
1986.3118
catalog number
1986.3118.04

figurine

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1983.0689.09
accession number
1983.0689
catalog number
1983.0689.09

"Saint Florian" Engine Panel Painting

In the nineteenth century, volunteer fire companies often commissioned paintings to decorate their hand-pumped fire engines for parades, competitions, and community events.
Description
In the nineteenth century, volunteer fire companies often commissioned paintings to decorate their hand-pumped fire engines for parades, competitions, and community events. Sometimes framed with elaborate carvings, they adorned the tall air chamber located at the middle or rear of a pumper. The paintings would often feature patriotic, heroic, or allegorical images to associate the volunteer companies with these lofty ideals.
The knight pictured is Saint Florian, who is associated with protection from the destructive forces of fire and water. Florian was a Roman guard under Emperor Diocletian who converted to Christianity. He was drowned when he refused to follow the order to persecute fellow Christians. The painting depicts Florian in his Roman garb putting out a fire with a single bucket of water, a common motif in depictions of the saint.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th century
maker
unknown
ID Number
2005.0233.0323
accession number
2005.0233
catalog number
2005.0233.0323

Letter to Cousin Ann from Ann Phelps (possibly)

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
1804-08-02
ID Number
DL.006873.140
catalog number
6873.140
accession number
28810

Home bound almanacs

The Copp Collection contains about 150 books of early American imprint and shows a wide range of reading matter typical of a New England Puritan family living in a port town. Literacy was expected of many New Englanders, as Puritan doctrine required everyone to read the Bible.
Description
The Copp Collection contains about 150 books of early American imprint and shows a wide range of reading matter typical of a New England Puritan family living in a port town. Literacy was expected of many New Englanders, as Puritan doctrine required everyone to read the Bible. The abundance of multiple Bibles, psalms, hymnodies, sermons, and morality tales reflects the Copp’s religious beliefs. Other highlights of the library include the works of Shakespeare, almanacs, historical and political texts, and travel narratives.
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
1734-1855
ID Number
DL.006861.04
catalog number
6861.04
accession number
28810

The Communicant's Spiritual Companion

Reverend Thomas Haweis’ The Communicant’s Spiritual Companion was published by Oliver Steele & Company of New Haven, Connecticut in 1809.
Description
Reverend Thomas Haweis’ The Communicant’s Spiritual Companion was published by Oliver Steele & Company of New Haven, Connecticut in 1809. The work was meant to open the conscience to the need for Jesus, to explain the nature of the Lord’s Supper, and to “enforce that universal surrender of heart to the Redeemer which his love justly demands.” To these five chapters prayers and meditations are added to aid the reader in incorporating the lessons taught in the work into their daily lives.
The Copp Collection contains about 150 books of early American imprint and shows a wide range of reading matter typical of a New England Puritan family living in a port town. Literacy was expected of many New Englanders, as Puritan doctrine required everyone to read the Bible. The abundance of multiple Bibles, psalms, hymnodies, sermons, and morality tales reflects the Copp’s religious beliefs. Other highlights of the library include the works of Shakespeare, almanacs, historical and political texts, and travel narratives.
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
ID Number
DL.006867.55
catalog number
6867.55
accession number
28810

Letter to Samuel Copp from Aaron Rathbone

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
1821-02-13
recipient
Copp, Jr., Samuel
originator (author, etc.)
Rathbone, Aaron
ID Number
DL.006873.080
catalog number
6873.080
accession number
28810

Bookmark, "Rohwer Relocation Center 1944"

This bookmark was likely created in the arts and crafts classes offered at most of the War Relocation Centers. On the back of the bookmark "Julia Nitta" was written in ink.
Description
This bookmark was likely created in the arts and crafts classes offered at most of the War Relocation Centers. On the back of the bookmark "Julia Nitta" was written in ink. Perhaps Julia made this bookmark to use in her books or it could have been given to her as a present from a fellow internee.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1944
ID Number
1986.3144.52
nonaccession number
1986.3144
catalog number
1986.3144.52

Trotting Horse Weathervane

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1875-1899
ID Number
CL.65.0932
catalog number
65.0932
accession number
256396

Sermons on the Religous Education of Children

Philip Doddridge’s Sermons on the Religious Education of Children was published by Samuel Cushing of Amherst, New Hampshire in 1794. The sermons were originally preached at Doddridge’s United Reformed Church in Northampton, England.
Description
Philip Doddridge’s Sermons on the Religious Education of Children was published by Samuel Cushing of Amherst, New Hampshire in 1794. The sermons were originally preached at Doddridge’s United Reformed Church in Northampton, England. The 100 page book includes four sermons based on the bible verse Proverbs 22:6, to “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old her will not depart from it.” From the Copp’s exceptional collection of geographies, spellers, readers, and primers for children, it is obvious they highly prized early education.
The Copp Collection contains about 150 books of early American imprint and shows a wide range of reading matter typical of a New England Puritan family living in a port town. Literacy was expected of many New Englanders, as Puritan doctrine required everyone to read the Bible. The abundance of multiple Bibles, psalms, hymnodies, sermons, and morality tales reflects the Copp’s religious beliefs. Other highlights of the library include the works of Shakespeare, almanacs, historical and political texts, and travel narratives.
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
ID Number
DL.006867.52
catalog number
6867.52
accession number
28810

Scrimshaw Sperm Whale Tooth, 19th-20th Centuries

This large, highly polished sperm whale tooth is carved on both sides. The obverse is etched with a large full-rigged three-masted ship sailing towards the observer with all sails set.
Description
This large, highly polished sperm whale tooth is carved on both sides. The obverse is etched with a large full-rigged three-masted ship sailing towards the observer with all sails set. Atop the mainmast is a homeward bound pennant, and fifteen gunports are aligned along the starboard side of the ship. Below the sailing ship is etched in upper case letters "MONMOUTH-L.Is." (for Long Island). The reverse has a large heart with a keyhole in the center, with a forked pennant swirling around it marked "SARAH THE KEY IS WITH THEE 1864". Below the name "Wm. BAYLES" is etched along the same line as the lettering on the other side. There were no whalers named Monmouth in the records, and William Bayles does not appear in the New Bedford Whaling Museum Whaling Crew List Database.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th-20th century
ID Number
1978.0052.25
accession number
1978.0052
catalog number
1978.52.25

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