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 1050 items.
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Silver Teapot made for Abigail Robinson of Newport, RI
- Description
- This silver teapot was made by Samuel Casey of Little Rest (later Kingston, R.I.), about 1750, for Abigail Robinson, probably about the time of her marriage to John Wanton of Newport, R.I., in 1752. Shaped like an inverted pear, the teapot has silver feet and a wooden finial. The wooden handle is a later replacement. The teapot came to the National Museum from descendents of the Wanton-Robinson family. In the Museum collection, such household items document the history of daily life, families, and patterns of consumption.
- Teapots were among the fashionable items that fit many colonists' taste for stylish possessions in 18th-century British North America. Among the prosperous classes, growing numbers adopted the genteel practice of drinking afternoon tea in imitation of the English gentry. Some Americans imported ceramic tea services, while others patronized local silversmiths. Silver was intrinsically expensive, and it allowed engraved decoration and personalized initials, as on this teapot.
- Although Abigail Robinson would change her name at marriage, her teapot expressed her identity with her family of origin. Born in 1732, she was a daughter of Deputy Governor William and Abigail (Gardiner) Robinson, and her family owned large estates in the Narragansett area. Robinson's initials are below the family coat-of-arms, a heraldic decoration that identified the American family as descended from Thomas Robinson, an official of "his Majesty's Court of Common Pleas" in London, England. Such coats of arms were an element of English society's commitment to social hierarchy, the division of the population into the few and elite on the one hand, the many and the common on the other. Silver and other items ornamented with coats of arms testify that immigrants to the New World brought with them some of the social distinctions of the Old World.
- Date made
- ca 1750
- user
- Robinson, Abigail
- silversmith
- Casey, Samuel
- ID Number
- 1979.0917.01
- catalog number
- 1979.0917.01
- accession number
- 1979.0917
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Timex Sinclair 2068 Personal Computer
- Description
- Introduced in 1983 at a cost of $199.95, the Timex-Sinclair 2068 (TS 2068) was the Timex Sinclair's fourth and last personal computer for the US market. It followed the ZX81, TS 1000, TS 1500, and the ZX Spectrum.
- The TS 2068 used a Z80 processor that ran at 3.58 MHz. Its memory included 48 KB of RAM and 54 KB of ROM. A cassette recorder was used for external storage. Like the TS 1000, the 2068 included a BASIC interpreter to run programs. Additional functions had been added to handle more complex graphic and sound commands. The TS 2068 included a sound chip and speaker at the bottom of the computer and had a range of 10 octaves and 130 semitones directly programmable from BASIC. Users could buy a TS 2400 printer that was attached to an expansion port.
- The TS 2068 was well equipped for playing games and was compatible with all software designed for the ZX Spectrum. The computer was generally used for entertainment, educational, and programming tutorials.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1980s
- maker
- Timex Computer Corporation
- ID Number
- 2000.0205.01
- catalog number
- 2000.0205.01
- accession number
- 2000.0205
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Plaid Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This steel lunch box was manufactured by the Ohio Art Company in1957. It features a metal snap for a hinged lid and a collapsible red, plastic handle. The exterior design is a red, brown and yellow plaid design.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1957
- maker
- Ohio Art Company
- ID Number
- 2001.3087.05
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3087
- catalog number
- 2001.3087.05
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Stars and Stripes Lunch Box
- Description (Brief)
- This steel domed lunch box was manufactured by Aladdin Industries in 1970. The lunch box features a metal snap for a hinged lid and a collapsible blue, plastic handle. The lunch box is decorated with large white stars on a blue lid and red and white vertical stripes on the sides and bottom of the lunch box, evoking the American flag.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1970
- maker
- Aladdin Industries Incorporated
- ID Number
- 2001.3087.17.01
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3087
- catalog number
- 2001.3087.17.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Stars and Stripes Thermos
- Description (Brief)
- This plastic and glass thermos bottle was made by Aladdin Industries in 19970. The botte has a red plastic, screw-on cup lid and red plastic, screw-on stopper. Large white stars on a blue background and red and white vertical stripes around the sides evoke the American flag. The bottle is a companion to the Stars and Stripes lunch box, object number 2001.3087.17.01.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1970
- maker
- Aladdin Industries Incorporated
- ID Number
- 2001.3087.17.02
- nonaccession number
- 2001.3087
- catalog number
- 2001.3087.17.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
IBM PCjr Personal Computer
- Description
- After the success of the IBM's business PC, IBM attempted to capture the home market with the IBM PCjr. The PCjr system was compact, low cost, and designed for applications related to learning, entertainment, and personal productivity.
- The computer had an Intel 8088 microprocessor that ran at 4.77 MHz–faster than most systems on the market at the time. It 64 KB of RAM, which could be expanded to 256 KB and later to 720 KB with third party add-ons. It featured an internal 5 1/4" floppy drive and a wireless keyboard. King's Context, a popular Adventure game of the 1980s, debuted on the PCjr.
- Despite a flashy debut and a strong technology core, the PCjr flopped in the market. Consumers were not as attracted by the IBM name as business had been. Price was a major factor. The PCjr cost about the same as the Coleco Adam, but for the price, the Adam included two tape drives, a printer, and software. The PCJr was twice as expensive as the Commodore 64. With the exception of the Apple II, it was possible to purchase a complete system (computer, disk drive, and printer) from almost any of IBM's competitors for less money. However, criticism of the system focused on the "chiclet" keyboard. Similar to that of a pocket calculator, the small keys were cheap and difficult to use for touch typing. IBM later replaced this with a wireless conventional-sized keyboard. But it could only be used two or three feet away from the machine and drained batteries quickly.
- Announced in November 1983 and available in March 1984, IBM sold the PCJr for $669 with 64 KB RAM, and $1,269 for 128 KB RAM. The more expensive system also included a floppy-disk drive. IBM discontinued the PCjr in March of 1985 after selling only approximately 270,000 units.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1983
- maker
- IBM
- ID Number
- 2002.0090.01
- catalog number
- 2002.0090.01
- accession number
- 2002.0090
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Family Photo Album
- Description
- Family photograph albums hold the history of generations, preserving the memories of birthdays, holidays, travels, and all general aspects of life. African American Mary Taylor used her 35mm Bell and Howell camera to document her family's life in the black community of Los Angeles, California, during the mid-20th century. She turned a discarded wallpaper sample book into a treasured family heirloom.
- Taylor's family photographs including 19th-century tintypes, turn-of-the-century hand-colored portraits, and albums from the 1950s to the 1970s provide insight into the African American experience in the United States over the past century.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- ca 1960
- maker
- Taylor, Mary A.
- ID Number
- 2002.0103.02
- accession number
- 2002.0103
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Franklin Ace 1200 Personal Computer
- Description
- The Franklin Ace 1200 was one of the Franklin Corporation models of Apple II clones made for sale in the United States. It was an upgrade of the Franklin 1000. It was compatible with Apple II computers, but could also run the CP/M operating system.
- The Franklin ACE 1200 had a MOS/Commodore 3502 microprocessor that ran at 1 MHz. It contained 48 KB of RAM and 16 KB of ROM and dual 5 ¼" floppy drives. The Ace 1200 came out between Apple II+ and the Apple //e. It included a CP/M card, a disk controller card, an 80 column card, and a dual serial/parallel card that was software interchangeable. The printer card caused problems because many applications did not recognize it.
- The Franklin Ace 1200 was introduced in 1983 for the price of $2,200. The Franklin series was ended after Franklin lost a legal battle with Apple.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- Date made
- 1983
- maker
- Franklin Computer Corporation
- ID Number
- 2002.0157.01
- accession number
- 2002.0157
- catalog number
- 2002.0157.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
1900 - 1920 Salesman's Sample Porcelain Bathtub
- Description
- By the early 20th century, many in cities and towns lived in homes with bathrooms. Consumers now viewed tubs as plumbing fixtures rather than furniture, along with sinks and toilets. In providing recommendations for fixtures in this new room, advice manuals and sanitary specialists preached against the heavy, free standing tubs behind which dust and dirt could collect.
- Bathtub manufacturers began to market built–in porcelain tubs, which they claimed were more durable and more easily cleaned than those of metal or iron enamel. Soon porcelain tubs came in various colors, “lend(ing) themselves to the most refined artistic and delicate (bath) decorations.”* The Trenton Potteries Company, maker of this sample, was one of the larger manufacturers of porcelain tubs in the United States.
- Many bathers, now accommodated by indoor plumbing and hot water, took to the tub for pleasure and relaxation, as well as to get clean. Ivory Soap advertisements emphasized this: “Ah—my Ivory bath—it’s a pleasure—pure pleasure.”** The bathtub became the center of the cleanliness ritual. The bathroom was on its way to becoming one of the featured and larger areas of the home in the later 20th and 21st centuries.
- For more information on bathing and bathtubs in the 19th and early 20th century, please see the introduction to this online exhibition.
- *Archibald M. Maddock, II, The Polished Earth: A History of the Pottery Plumbing Fixture Industry in the United States, (Trenton, NJ, 1962), 275.
- **Ivory Soap ad, 1953
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- early 20th century
- 1900-1920
- manufacturer
- Trenton Potteries Company
- ID Number
- 1980.0823.01
- accession number
- 1980.0823
- catalog number
- 1980.0823.01
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Apple Macintosh Mouse
- Description
- Invented in 1963, the mouse improved interactions with computers. However, not until 1984, when Apple Computers introduced the Macintosh and its graphical user interface, did the mouse become a standard computer component.
- Date made
- 1984
- maker
- Apple Computer
- ID Number
- 1985.3011.01.1
- catalog number
- 1985.3011.01.1
- accession number
- 1985.3011
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center