Family & Social Life - Overview
Donations to the Museum have preserved irreplaceable evidence about generations of ordinary Americans. Objects from the Copp household of Stonington, Connecticut, include many items used by a single family from 1740 to 1850. Other donations have brought treasured family artifacts from jewelry to prom gowns. These gifts and many others are all part of the Museum's family and social life collections.
Children's books and Sunday school lessons, tea sets and family portraits also mark the connections between members of a family and between families and the larger society. Prints, advertisements, and artifacts offer nostalgic or idealized images of family life and society in times past. And the collections include a few modern conveniences that have had profound effects on American families and social life, such as televisions, video games, and personal computers.
"Family & Social Life - Overview" showing 92 items.
Page 1 of 10
Astronaut Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This steel lunch box was manufactured by Aladdin Industries in 1969 to take advantage of the excitement over the moon landing. The exterior features images from the Apollo 11 mission, including Neil Armstrong’s first step onto the lunar surface, and the command module’s splashdown. There is an illustrated National Safety Council "Safety First" message printed in black and white on the interior lid, and the bottom features an image of the plaque that was left on the lunar surface.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1969
- maker
- Aladdin
- ID Number
- 2001.3087.14.01
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3087
- catalog number
- 2001.3087.14.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Astronaut Thermos
- Description (Brief)
- This plastic and glass thermos bottle depicts colorful scenes of the Apollo 11 landing on the moon on all exterior surfaces. This bottle is the companion to the Astronaut lunch box, object #2001.3087.14.01.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1969
- ID Number
- 2001.3087.14.02
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3087
- catalog number
- 2001.3087.14.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Mod Tulip Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This lunch box is a domed, tin lunch box with two metal snaps for a hinged lid and a collapsible beige plastic handle. The box has a colorful floral design over a black background.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1962
- maker
- Ohio Art Company
- ID Number
- 2001.3100.07
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3100
- catalog number
- 2001.3100.07
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Orbit Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This tin lunch box was made by Thermos in 1963. It has a metal snap for a hinged lid and a collapsible red, plastic handle. The front side of the box shows a cross section of the Mercury manned space flight module, showing John Glenn operating the capsule. The reverse side shows the Atlas rocket launching from the space pad. These images were lifted from National Geographic, and Thermos received a cease and desist and stopped production. As such, these boxes are rather rare.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1963
- maker
- King Seeley Thermos
- ID Number
- 2001.3100.13.01
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3100
- catalog number
- 2001.3100.13.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Orbit Thermos
- Description (Brief)
- This tin, plastic and glass thermos bottle was manufactured by Thermos in 1963, and is the companion bottle to lunch box object number 2001.3100.13.01. It has a screw-on, red plastic cup lid and a red and tan, screw-on plastic stopper. The bottle features scenes of the Mercury space mission, with the rockets blast-off, orbit, and atmospheric re-entry.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1963
- maker
- King Seeley Thermos
- ID Number
- 2001.3100.13.02
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3100
- catalog number
- 2001.3100.13.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Submarine Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This tin lunch box was manufactured by Thermos in 1960. It has a metal snap for a hinged lid and a collapsible, red plastic handle. The art on the lunch box features images of four submarines on the back and sides. The submarines are the USS Nautilus, Seawolf, Skipjack, and George Washington. The George Washington is shown firing an underwater missile, and there is a cross-section of the USS Nautilus on the bottom.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1960
- maker
- Thermos
- American Thermos Bottle Company
- ID Number
- 2001.3101.06.01
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3101
- catalog number
- 2001.3101.06.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Submarine Thermos
- Description (Brief)
- This tin, plastic and glass thermos bottle was made by Thermos in 1960. It has a red plastic, screw-on cup lid and a red and white plastic, screw-on stopper. The bottle has an image of an officer using a submarine’s periscope. The bottle is the companion of lunch box #2001.3101.06.01.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1960
- maker
- American Thermos Bottle Company
- ID Number
- 2001.3101.06.02
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3101
- catalog number
- 2001.3101.06.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Pop Art Bread Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This domed, tin lunch box was made by Aladdin in 1968. It has two metal snaps on a hinged lid and a collapsible, yellow plastic handle. The box has a brilliant pop art design, taking the form of a sliced loaf of bread.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1968
- maker
- Aladdin
- ID Number
- 2001.3101.16
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3101
- catalog number
- 2001.3101.16
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Psychedelic Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This domed steel lunch box was manufactured by Aladdin Industries in 1969. This lunch box features a psychedelic pattern of swirling orange, red, pink and yellow. The wild design aesthetic is representative of the 1960’s ethos and evokes other sixties motifs like tie-dye and lava lamps.
- Date made
- 1969
- maker
- Aladdin
- ID Number
- 2003.3070.23.01
- nonaccession number
- 2003.3070
- catalog number
- 2003.3070.23.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Psychedelic Thermos
- Description (Brief)
- This plastic and glass thermos bottle was made by Aladdin Industries in 1960. The bottle has a screw-on yellow cup lid with handle and screw-on yellow stopper. The thermos has a psychedelic, undulating yellow and black checkerboard design.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1960
- maker
- Aladdin
- ID Number
- 2003.3070.23.02
- nonaccession number
- 2003.3070
- catalog number
- 2003.3070.23.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
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