Domestic Furnishings

Washboards, armchairs, lamps, and pots and pans may not seem to be museum pieces. But they are invaluable evidence of how most people lived day to day, last week or three centuries ago. The Museum's collections of domestic furnishings comprise more than 40,000 artifacts from American households. Large and small, they include four houses, roughly 800 pieces of furniture, fireplace equipment, spinning wheels, ceramics and glass, family portraits, and much more.

The Arthur and Edna Greenwood Collection contains more than 2,000 objects from New England households from colonial times to mid-1800s. From kitchens of the past, the collections hold some 3,300 artifacts, ranging from refrigerators to spatulas. The lighting devices alone number roughly 3,000 lamps, candleholders, and lanterns.

Colored print; depiction of Columbus landing on San Salvadore Island. He stands on the beach with a flag of Spain in one hand and a raised sword in the other. Beside him is a large crucifix set into the ground. He is surrounded by a group of kneeling and praying men.
Description (Brief)
Colored print; depiction of Columbus landing on San Salvadore Island. He stands on the beach with a flag of Spain in one hand and a raised sword in the other. Beside him is a large crucifix set into the ground. He is surrounded by a group of kneeling and praying men. Two sailing ships are in the right background and a group of Indians approaches in the left background.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1846
depicted
Columbus, Christopher
maker
Baillie, James S.
ID Number
DL.60.2545
catalog number
60.2545
accession number
228146
Color print of two Indians in a canoe coming at a river bank. The canoe contains deer killed in the hunt. A woman and child greet the canoe while another woman, two children and a dog are in the background.
Description (Brief)
Color print of two Indians in a canoe coming at a river bank. The canoe contains deer killed in the hunt. A woman and child greet the canoe while another woman, two children and a dog are in the background. The setting is an Indian camp with many decorated tepeesk on a river bank.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1885
artist
Darley, Felix Octavius Carr
maker
Beckwith Henry W.
ID Number
DL.60.3503
catalog number
60.3503
Color print of an Indian camp on a river bank depicting tepees under trees. Indians are fishing, smoking a pipe and working on a hide stretched on a frame.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Color print of an Indian camp on a river bank depicting tepees under trees. Indians are fishing, smoking a pipe and working on a hide stretched on a frame.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
maker
Vincent Brooks Day and Son
ID Number
DL.60.3520
catalog number
60.3520
Black and white print, half length portrait of a seated man (Richard Johnson). He holds a sword in his right hand.
Description (Brief)
Black and white print, half length portrait of a seated man (Richard Johnson). He holds a sword in his right hand. The portrait is depicted in an oval frame bearing the inscription "In war, the undaunted soldier- In peace, the enlightened statesman." The frame is topped by an eagle wearing a shield shaped breastplate labeled "Education" and a banner above its head which reads "Equal Rights." Beneath the frame is a vignette of a mail coach pulled by four horses and additional inscriptions.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
depicted
Johnson, Richard Mentor
maker
Williams, Michael
ID Number
DL.60.3198
catalog number
60.3198
This black and white print is of a life membership to a Mr. Philip J.A. Harper issued by the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Description
This black and white print is of a life membership to a Mr. Philip J.A. Harper issued by the Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The Society, begun in 1820 and headquartered in New York City, was among the earliest organizations that focused on mission within and outside the United States. It initially worked to convert Native Americans and slaves before extending its activities to inhabitants of West Africa and elsewhere overseas.
A vignette depicting missionary activity appears above the text that was inspired by the Society’s proselytizing during the 19th Century. On the right side is a depiction of Native Americans and Africans who were “saved” due to the preaching of a missionary. The left side shows the damnation that comes to those who fail to hear God’s word. Above the scene floats a triumphant angel sent by God who is blowing a trumpet, Bible in hand.
This print was produced by Nathaniel Currier (1813-1888). Currier was the founder of the company that eventually became the Currier & Ives lithography firm. At the age of fifteen Currier apprenticed with the Pendleton lithography firm in New York City. Five years later he moved to Philadelphia to work with the lithographer M.E.D. Brown (1810-1896). After a year Currier moved back to New York, where he intended on going into business with one of the Pendleton brothers. Instead he formed a partnership in 1834 with Adam Stodart who was in the sheet music business. Within a year he opened his own lithography company on Wall Street and then moved to Nassau and Spruce. In 1852 a bookkeeper named James Merritt Ives joined the firm. He married Charles Currier’s sister-in-law and brought to the firm a critical eye and business acumen. In five years he had become a partner. Currier & Ives would become arguably the most successful and prodigious lithography firm of the 19th century. Although especially well known for prints celebrating American landscapes and pastimes like sailing and ice skating, Currier & Ives also produced lithographs that featured current events, social issues and political controversies
Location
Currently on loan
Date made
1848
issuer
Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church
maker
Currier, Nathaniel
ID Number
DL.60.2929
catalog number
60.2929
accession number
228146
Color print of an Indian on a black horse lassoing a white horse in a herd of wild horses.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Color print of an Indian on a black horse lassoing a white horse in a herd of wild horses.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1872
maker
Rice, W. W.
Darley, Felix Octavius Carr
ID Number
DL.60.3524
catalog number
60.3524
Black and white print; four scenes depicting Indians killing the Baker and Jones families in the town of Acton, Minnesota, August 18, 1862.
Description (Brief)
Black and white print; four scenes depicting Indians killing the Baker and Jones families in the town of Acton, Minnesota, August 18, 1862. The scenes are labeled: "No.1, The Approach.";" No.2, Cabin as now Stands.";"No.3, The Massacre.";"No.4, The Trial of Guns."
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1863
maker
Charles Shober and Company
Chicago Lithographing Company
ID Number
DL.60.2562
catalog number
60.2562
accession number
228146
Color print of an Indian with drawn bow on horseback about to shoot a buffalo.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Color print of an Indian with drawn bow on horseback about to shoot a buffalo.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
maker
unknown
ID Number
DL.60.3522
catalog number
60.3522
Colored print celebrating the laying of the Transatlantic cable on September 1, 1858.
Description (Brief)
Colored print celebrating the laying of the Transatlantic cable on September 1, 1858. Depicts torchlight procession spanning the continents in the central image, with portrait vingettes of Cyrus Field, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Morse, and Captain Hudson in each of the four corners.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1858
depicted
Franklin, Benjamin
Morse, Samuel Finley Breese
Field, Cyrus W.
maker
Weingartner, Adam
ID Number
DL.60.2490
catalog number
60.2490
accession number
228146
This print is one of fifteen chromolithographs that were included in the 1889-1890 folio "Sport or Fishing and Shooting" published by Bradlee Whidden of Boston and edited by A.C. Gould.
Description (Brief)
This print is one of fifteen chromolithographs that were included in the 1889-1890 folio "Sport or Fishing and Shooting" published by Bradlee Whidden of Boston and edited by A.C. Gould. These prints are based on watercolors that were commissioned for the publication, and illustrated by prominent American artists. Each folio illustration was accompanied by a single leaf of descriptive text followed by an account of the depicted sporting scene. The publication was advertised as having been reviewed for accuracy by a renowned group of anglers and hunters prior to printing.
This print was originally titled and numbered on the text page as 9. A wild Turkey hunt. R.F. Zogbaum. It depicts a young man lying in the grass aiming his rifle at four turkeys. A young Indian guide is crouched behind him.
The artist was Rufus Fairchild Zogbaum (1849-1925), known for his images of horses, cowboys, and battle scenes.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1890
publisher; copywriter
Bradlee Whidden
lithographer
Forbes Lithograph Manufacturing Company
artist
Zogbaum, Rufas Fairchild
ID Number
DL.60.2723
catalog number
60.2723
accession number
228146
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1845
depicted
Steele, Osman N.
maker
unknown
ID Number
DL.60.2590
catalog number
60.2590
accession number
228146
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1852
publisher
Holbrooke, W. H.
artist
Darley, Felix Octavius Carr
engraver
McRae, M. C.
printer
Ashton, W. H.
ID Number
DL.60.2619
catalog number
60.2619
accession number
228146
Black and white print; political cartoon depicting a map of the United States in 1828. A large turtle and alligator are featured at center with several caricatures riding or standing on each of them, expressing views regarding the John Quincy Adams administration.
Description (Brief)
Black and white print; political cartoon depicting a map of the United States in 1828. A large turtle and alligator are featured at center with several caricatures riding or standing on each of them, expressing views regarding the John Quincy Adams administration. In the background is a mountain range with two groups of Indians commenting on American life.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1829
maker
Imbert, Anthony
ID Number
DL.60.2420
catalog number
60.2420
accession number
228146
Color print of an Indian with drawn bow on horseback pursuing a buffalo.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Color print of an Indian with drawn bow on horseback pursuing a buffalo.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
n.d.
maker
Rice, Rutter & Co.
publisher
Rice, Rutter & Co.
ID Number
DL.60.3525
catalog number
60.3525
Hand color print, full length portrait of an Indian (Osceola) standing with his arm outstretched holding a rifle. He is standing beside a stone that identifies Osceola and the artist. Catlin and Osceola became friends after Osceola was imprisoned.
Description
Hand color print, full length portrait of an Indian (Osceola) standing with his arm outstretched holding a rifle. He is standing beside a stone that identifies Osceola and the artist. Catlin and Osceola became friends after Osceola was imprisoned. Osceola, also known as Billy Powell, Asi-yahola in Creek, Rising Sun, Black Dring, and Tiger of the Everglades, was leader of the Seminole Indians. Born in 1804, his mother was Muscogee or Creek on her maternal side and European ancestry from her father. In 1835 he led resistance of the forced removal in what was called the Second Seminole War. He died in 1838 reportedly from malaria in Fort Moultrie federal prison in South Carolina after being tricked into surrendering under a truce flag. By the end of the 1830's, virtually all Seminoles were forced to leave their ancestral home in Florida for the west. Thousands died on the "Trail of Tears."
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1838
depicted
Osceola
maker
Catlin, George
ID Number
DL.63.0186
catalog number
63.0186
accession number
242030
This political cartoon appeared during the 1856 presidential election and takes a vehement stance against the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854.
Description
This political cartoon appeared during the 1856 presidential election and takes a vehement stance against the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. Designed to open these territories to settlement, this act employed the doctrine of popular sovereignty to allow the people living in Kansas and Nebraska to vote these states into the Union as either slave or free. This resulted in the outbreak of violence between pro-slavery and anti-slavery factions in the Kansas Territory, earning it the nickname “Bleeding Kansas.” This print depicts scenes of violence by pro-slavery “border ruffians” from Missouri who have crossed into Kansas against the free-soil settlers living there. In the foreground, leading figures of the Democratic Party are depicted as border ruffians. The personification of “Liberty, the Fair Maid of Kansas,” wears a Phrygian cap and a cape made of the American flag, and occupies the center of the illustration. Kneeling on the ground before Franklin Pierce, under whose presidency the Act had been passed. As he stands over her, with his foot on her cape, she begs him, “O spare me gentlemen, spare me!!” Pierce, shown heavily armed and drinking from a bottle, drunkenly guarantees her safety. To their right, Lewis Cass, a Democratic Senator from Michigan, leers at Liberty and sarcastically agrees with Pierce that she will be unharmed. On the right, Stephen Douglas scalps an anti-slavery settler. Douglas had designed the Act, hoping that the settlement of the western territories would allow for the construction of a transcontinental railroad. To the left of Pierce, presidential hopeful, James Buchanan, and William Marcy, Pierce’s Secretary of State, loot the body of a killed free-soiler. Marcy’s trousers are damaged and marked with “50 cts,” referring to a joke used by his political enemies. When serving as an associate justice for the Supreme Court of New York, he had used state funds to repair his pants. In the background, various scenes of violence perpetrated by the border ruffians are exhibited. Although there was actual violence in “Bleeding Kansas,” the imagery of theft and abduction in this print speaks to the possession of pro-slavery ideology over the virgin lands of Kansas.
This print is attributed to John L. Magee, who was born in New York around 1820. In New York, he was employed by the lithographic firms of James Baillie and Nathaniel Currier. He started his own business in New York in 1850, but moved to Philadelphia sometime shortly after 1852. He was known for his political cartoons, which he produced until the 1860s.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
ca 1854
depicted
Pierce, Franklin
Buchanan, James
Douglas, Stephen A.
Cass, Lewis
Marcy, William L.
maker
unknown
artist attribution
Magee, John L.
ID Number
DL.60.3461
catalog number
60.3461
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1896 - 1906
date of inscription
1946-10-25
Associated Date
ca 1860 - 1964
ID Number
DL.65.1313
catalog number
65.1313
accession number
255605
Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1901 - ca 1920
ID Number
DL.288746.0007
catalog number
288746.0007
accession number
288746
Custer’s Last Fight is considered one of if not the most reproduced lithographs of the late 19th and most of the 20th Centuries with over a million copies distributed to saloons, dining establishments, barber shops, and eventually collectors.
Description
Custer’s Last Fight is considered one of if not the most reproduced lithographs of the late 19th and most of the 20th Centuries with over a million copies distributed to saloons, dining establishments, barber shops, and eventually collectors. This print was used as an advertising promotion for Budweiser Beer by Anheuser Busch. It is chromolithograph on paper mounted on cardboard that is based on the Cassilly Adams painting which in turn was inspired by the narrative of the battle by a scout named Curley, along with probably the success of the John Mulvany 1881 painting Custer’s Last Fight .
The Cassilly Adams painting that this print copied was started about 1885 and completed in 1888 in Adams studio using soldiers and Native Americans as models. The completed work toured the Midwest before being sold to John Ferber, who owned a saloon in St Louis, Missouri. Adolphus Busch acquired the painting along with a saloon when the owner couldn't pay his bills for the sum of $35,000 in 1892. Eager to have the original copied for advertising, he commissioned the Milwaukee Lithographic Engraving Company. The artist, F. Otto Becker, produced a 24X40 inch painting which was a modified copy of the Cassilly Adams painting. After the Becker copy was made, the original Adams painting was presented to the 7th Cavalry it was moved about until it was damaged. It was then sent to the WPA in Boston for restoration in the 1930's and when returned, it hung in the officer's club at Fort Bliss, Texas until it was destroyed by fire on June 13, 1946.
The 1892 Becker painting was created only to be divided into six sections and given to the lithographers to create the color plates used to produce the 1896 chromolithographic advertising prints. The Becker painting was then pieced back together and restored to hang in the St. Louis board room of Anheuser-Busch, Incorporated.
Based on photographs of the Adams original, the Becker version is more topographically correct but also more graphically explicit as an interpretation of the very violent event. The color print depicts the battle between General Custer's troops and Indian warriors at Little Big Horn. Custer is featured at center waving a saber and dressed in a fringed buckskin. The remaining cavalry officers, except for Custer's brother Tom, are dressed in military uniform. Indians are armed with scalping knives, tomahawks, clubs, spears, and rifles. The dead appear in foreground, with several identified in the bottom margin. The background depicts a peaceful landscape, though there is a hint of the thousands of Indians that significantly outnumbered Custer and his men. Custer's medals and banners are depicted in lower left margin. In the lower right margin is an image of a Native American on horseback posing beside the granite monument for the 7th US Cavalry that was erected in 1881 at the Little Bighorn Battlefield. Text below the image advertises the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Assn.
There have been numerous commentaries on the historic inaccuracies of the depiction which was designed for maximum emotional impact. These inaccuracies range from the length of Custer’s hair which is depicted as long and flowing, when he had days prior had it cut short, to the dress or undress of the depicted Indians and the types of weapons. The artist also included a long red cravat around Custer’s neck, which was mentioned by Libby Custer in her book on her husband. The visual impact of the print version has also been the subject of several notable comments, including this print’s collector, Harry T. Peters, who mentioned in America on Stone that “The detail is endless and extremely lurid, and anyone who saw this print when young will not forget it.” Clearly the artist was successful in gaining reactions to the piece, if not always favorable ones.
Versions of the advertising print vary according to margin size and legend content, but the first run edition resulted in 15,000 prints. According to America on Stone the museum’s copy should have a signature of "O. Becker" in the right lower corner, but it does not. Nor does it have the caption "Taken from the Artist's Sketches. The Original Painting by Cassilly Adams." Supposedly that would indicate it as the earliest edition. Other versions of this print also give a fuller list of those depicted on the image and some further advertise Anheuser Busch as "The World's Largest Brewery" and "Home of Budweiser." However, based on the collector’s purchasing and the condition of the print it would have been produced between 1896 and 1920. There have since been 18 subsequent editions totaling more than a million copies according to Anheuser-Busch. Copies continued to be issued until the 1970's when the cultural awareness of Native Americans began to affect the marketability of the print. New copies of the print are still mass produced and marketed.
Cassilly Adams (1843-1921) was an engraver and painter. He learned to paint at the Boston Academy of Arts and the Cincinnati Art School and later worked in Indiana, Ohio, and St. Louis, Missouri.
F. Otto Becker (1854-1945) was a German American Artist employed by the Milwaukee Lithographic and Engraving Company. He was active in Milwaukee and St. Louis from 1881 until his death, producing lithographs for board games as well as prints. He is best known for his work on Custer's Last Fight.
Milwaukee Lithographing was founded by German-American Henry Seifert in 1852. In the 1870's, he partnered with Henry and Julius Gugler to form the Milwaukee Lithographic & Engraving Company. Augustus Koenig, a friend of Adolphus Busch, became involved with the company in the late 1880's. The company continued to operate until 1920.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1896-1920
depicted
Custer, Thomas Ward
Rain In The Face
Cooke, William W.
Yates, George W.
Reed, Harry Armstrong
Reily, William Van W.
Smith, Algernon E.
Custer, George Armstrong
copyright holder
Busch, Adolphus
commissioned by
Anheuser-Busch Companies, Incorporated
originator
Adams, Cassily
maker
Milwaukee Lithographic & Engraving Company
artist
Becker, F. Otto
ID Number
DL.60.2600
catalog number
60.2600
accession number
228146
Color print depicting a large crowd of visitors standing in front of the New York Crystal Palace, a glass and iron structure with a central dome.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Color print depicting a large crowd of visitors standing in front of the New York Crystal Palace, a glass and iron structure with a central dome.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1853
publisher
Seitz, Emil
printer
Ballin, M.
artist; printer
Fay, Augustus
ID Number
DL.60.3748
catalog number
60.3748
Colored print of the landing at Plymouth Rock. A rowboat filled with men (Carver, Bradford, Wilson, Brewster and Standish, according to inscription written in the snow at right of image) makes its way to the rocky shore. On the right stands an Indian extending a welcoming hand.
Description (Brief)
Colored print of the landing at Plymouth Rock. A rowboat filled with men (Carver, Bradford, Wilson, Brewster and Standish, according to inscription written in the snow at right of image) makes its way to the rocky shore. On the right stands an Indian extending a welcoming hand. A three-masted ship is anchored in the background.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1845
publisher
Eayrs, Thomas
maker
B.W. Thayer & Co.
ID Number
DL.60.2533
catalog number
60.2533
accession number
228146
Colored print; full length portrait of a young Indian woman with basket of flowers on her head, accompanied by a young Indian boy holding a bow and arrow. Teepees and canoe in background.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Colored print; full length portrait of a young Indian woman with basket of flowers on her head, accompanied by a young Indian boy holding a bow and arrow. Teepees and canoe in background.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1833-1851
maker
Robinson, Henry R.
ID Number
DL.60.2328
catalog number
60.2328
accession number
228146
This hand-colored allegorical print displays hopes for reconciliation through the federal program of Reconstruction. The nation and government are symbolized by an enormous canopy-like structure, upon which is emblazoned with a map of the United States.
Description
This hand-colored allegorical print displays hopes for reconciliation through the federal program of Reconstruction. The nation and government are symbolized by an enormous canopy-like structure, upon which is emblazoned with a map of the United States. An eagle holding a crest and American flag sits atop the map. A frieze that encircles the structure’s dome displays depictions of the Senate, House of Representatives, Supreme Court, and Cabinet. Pillars representing each of the state governments support the dome. However, the pillars and bases symbolizing the Confederate states are in the process of being replaced, providing for the viewer a pictorial representation of the process of Reconstruction. Under the shelter of the canopy, the leaders of the Union and the Confederacy come to terms: Ulysses S. Grant shakes hands with Robert E. Lee and Horace Greeley embraces Jefferson Davis. At the bottom of the illustration, a black and white baby sleep under an eagle holding a banner reading, “All men are born free and equal.” In the lower left, intermixed gathering of black and white voters gather near two plaques labeled “Universal Suffrage.” In the lower right, white officials meet with Native American chiefs in a tent to discuss terms of “Indian Reconstruction.” Nearby, black and white children play together in the yard of a school marked as “Universal Education.” Above the landscape of the print, the faces of various American statesmen and historical figures look down from a cloud upon Reconstruction. Near the center of this array of profiles, John C. Calhoun and Daniel Webster feature prominently. In the center, a robed figure of Jesus wearing a crown of peace is accompanied by the words, “Do to others as you would have others do to you.” In the upper right corners float the female personifications of Liberty and Justice. Below the faces, two disembodied hands are clasped, followed by the words, “Union & Liberty Forever.” Although idealistic, many of the elements depicted in this print would not become realities during Reconstruction: universal suffrage and education for all races would not come into practice until the 20th century, westward expansion would result in continuing bloodshed and further mar U.S. - Native Americans relations, and the country would continue to face deep regional sectionalism throughout the 19th century.
The print was illustrated by John L. Giles, a New York artist and lithographer active between 1876 and 1882. It was printed by Francis Ratellier, a New York lithographer active from 1859 to 1869. The print was published by Horatio Bateman of New York. Three years after the creation of this print, Bateman published Reconstruction Illustrated and Explained: Biographies of 250 Distinguished National Men, which identified all of the people depicted in the work.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1867
copyright holder; publisher
Bateman, Horatio
lithographer
Giles, John Lawrence
printer
Ratellier, Francis
ID Number
DL.60.2554
catalog number
60.2554
accession number
228146
228146
This colored poster print is a bust portrait of an American Indian woman, depicted on the image of a large arrowhead.
Description
This colored poster print is a bust portrait of an American Indian woman, depicted on the image of a large arrowhead. She is identified as "’Arrowhead,’ Belle of the Tribe.”
Buffalo Bill's Wild West was one of the most successful American variety shows of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The touring production was created by William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody (1846-1917), who promoted his ventures with the help of posters, billboards and other media innovations of the time. Cody was born in Le Claire, Iowa Territory, and lived in Canada before moving with his family to the Kansas Territory. His father was an outspoken opponent of slavery who died following a bloody attack by pro-slavery settlers when Cody was eleven years old. Forced to go to work to support his mother and siblings, he went on to become a buffalo hunter, guide and civilian scout and soon gained a reputation as a daring frontiersman and Indian fighter.
Nicknamed Buffalo Bill, Cody polished that reputation recounting campfire tales that mingled fact, exaggeration and outright fiction. His growing fame inspired a series of dime novels and helped launch Cody on a traveling stage career as the star of frontier melodramas. He had a natural gift for showmanship, a knack for homespun humor, and a western hero’s rugged good looks: he was often photographed holding a rifle and dressed in a buckskin suit with a wide brimmed hat and shoulder length hair. Hoping to expand his appeal to attract more middle-class family audiences, Cody launched his Buffalo Bill's Wild West in 1883. The outdoor variety show featured vignettes from frontier history, sharp shooting demonstrations, and riding stunts, with Buffalo Bill in a starring role as the expert marksman on horseback. He rounded out the cast with an ever widening and more diverse group of performers, including Lakota Sioux Indians, frontier cowboys, Mexican vacqueros, and Argentine gauchos. He added a female performer in 1885—sharpshooter Annie Oakley (born Phoebe Ann Mosey, 1860-1926)— who was so skilled with a gun that she could shoot a dime from between her husband’s thumb and forefinger. After the show expanded to become Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders in 1893, it also featured European cavalry, Cossacks and Arab horsemen.
The Wild West show toured throughout the United States and Europe. Its success was fueled by popular nostalgia for America’s fading frontier. But the show also flourished as America modernized, relying on train travel and new technologies like electric lighting to reach and entertain audiences. Cody inspired a host of imitators, whose productions were often referred to simply as Buffalo Bill shows.
By the early twentieth century, Buffalo Bill’s heroic image had been tarnished by a scandalous divorce trial, and his show faced growing competition from the fledgling film industry. In 1909 he merged with a former rival, Gordon William Lillie, to create Buffalo Bill’s Wild West and Pawnee Bill’s Great Far East. The Great Far East Show was an ensemble group founded by Gordon William Lillie (1860-1942), nicknamed Pawnee Bill. Born in Illinois, Lillie had worked for the Pawnee Indian Agency and also served as a Pawnee interpreter for Buffalo Bill's Wild West. The combined production, sometimes called the “Two Bills Show,” featured traditional frontier acts with more exotic attractions like elephants, camels, and belly dancers. Mounting debt and a series of bad investments eventually forced Buffalo Bill to declare bankruptcy and shut down the show in 1915. When he died in 1917 in Denver, Colorado, his passing was noted by prominent figures ranging from European royalty to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. The town of Cody, Wyoming, which he helped found in 1896, is the site of a museum complex called the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.
This chromolithograph was produced by Strobridge Lithographing Company. The Strobridge firm was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio ca 1847 by lithographer Elijah J. Middleton (cited in some sources as Elijah C. Middleton). Middleton was known as one of the pioneers of chromolithography in the United States. By 1854 another lithographer, W. R. Wallace, along with the bookseller Hines Strobridge (1823-1909) had joined the firm as partners. After the Civil War, Strobridge acquired sole ownership of the company and renamed it after himself. Strobridge and Company became especially well known for circus, theater, and movie posters. After leaving the company, Elijah Middleton established a reputation as a portrait publisher, producing prints of George and Martha Washington, Daniel Webster, and other American historical figures.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1908
maker
Strobridge Lithographing Company
ID Number
DL.60.3004
catalog number
60.3004

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