Industry & Manufacturing

Eli Terry Mass-Produced Clock

The Museum's collections document centuries of remarkable changes in products, manufacturing processes, and the role of industry in American life. In the bargain, they preserve artifacts of great ingenuity, intricacy, and sometimes beauty.

The carding and spinning machinery built by Samuel Slater about 1790 helped establish the New England textile industry. Nylon-manufacturing machinery in the collections helped remake the same industry more than a century later. Machine tools from the 1850s are joined by a machine that produces computer chips. Thousands of patent models document the creativity of American innovators over more than 200 years.

The collections reach far beyond tools and machines. Some 460 episodes of the television series Industry on Parade celebrate American industry in the 1950s. Numerous photographic collections are a reminder of the scale and even the glamour of American industry.

Date: 1860s

Patent Model of a Type Breaker

This patent model demonstrates an invention for a type breaker which was assigned patent number 86968. This device broke the jets from the bodies of newly cast type and was intended to be attached to a typecasting machine.
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a type breaker which was assigned patent number 86968. This device broke the jets from the bodies of newly cast type and was intended to be attached to a typecasting machine. The patent was granted to Philip Heinrich, proprietor of the Ph. Heinrich type foundry in New York.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1869
patent date
1869-02-16
maker
Baer, Charles
ID Number
GA.89797.086968
patent number
086968
accession number
089797
catalog number
GA*89797.086968

Ulysses S. Grant Campaign Badge

This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer, and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer, and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign badges.
The badge features a tintype photograph of Ulysses S. Grant set into a brass frame, which would have originally been attached to a pin and displayed on clothing.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
depicted
Grant, Ulysses S.
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1069
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1069

Abraham Lincoln Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer, and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer, and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign badges.
Obverse: Profile image of Abraham Lincoln facing right. Legend reads: HON. ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 1860.
Reverse: Depiction of two men splitting logs with a log cabin in the background. Legend reads: THE RAIL SPLITTER OF THE WEST.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1860
depicted
Lincoln, Abraham
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1074
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1074

Patent Model of a Pantographic Engraving Machine

This patent model demonstrates an invention for a model of a pantographic engraving machine which was granted patent number 54759.
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a model of a pantographic engraving machine which was granted patent number 54759. The patent details an engraving machine capable of producing copies of the same size as the pattern, or larger or smaller, or of altered proportions; also, a ruling machine.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1866
patent date
1866-05-15
patentee
Oldham, Edmund
ID Number
GA.89797.054759
patent number
054759
accession number
089797
catalog number
GA*89797.054759

Patent Model of a Machine for Cutting Paper Collars

This patent model demonstrates an invention for a machine for cutting paper collars and simultaneously indenting them with imitation stitches or printing them with ornamental devices; the invention was granted patent number 56679.J. F.
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a machine for cutting paper collars and simultaneously indenting them with imitation stitches or printing them with ornamental devices; the invention was granted patent number 56679.
J. F. Tapley, a bookbinder and a prolific inventor, founded the bookbinding J. F. Tapley Company in 1850. The company survived until its merger in 1970.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1866
patent date
1866-07-24
maker
Tapley, Jesse F.
Tapley, George W.
ID Number
GA.24592
patent number
056679
accession number
1977.0968
catalog number
GA*24592

Abraham Lincoln Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign badges.
Obverse: Bust depiction of Abraham Lincoln facing forward. The legend reads: ABRAM LINCOLN/ FREE LAND, FREE SPEECH & FREE MEN.
Reverse: An image of an eagle with the U.S. shield, clutching arrows and an olive branch in its talons. The legend reads: UNION OF THE STATES.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1860
depicted
Lincoln, Abraham
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1085
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1085

Patent Model of a Type-Making Machine

This patent model demonstrates an invention for a type-making machine which was granted patent number 43649. The patent details a machine for sawing individual letters from cast-metal strip of letters.
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a type-making machine which was granted patent number 43649. The patent details a machine for sawing individual letters from cast-metal strip of letters. The strips were to be made by Smith's companion patent of the same date.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1864
patent date
1864-07-26
maker
Smith, John J. C.
ID Number
GA.89797.043649
patent number
043649
accession number
089797
catalog number
GA*89797.043649

Ulysses S. Grant Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including campaign medals.
Obverse: Bust of Ulysses S. Grant facing left. Legend: GRANT & COLFAX REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES 1868.
Reverse: Two branches rim the edge, with two crossed flags, a drum, and bayoneted rifles at the base of the branches. Legend: FIRST IN THE HEARTS OF HIS SOLDIERS.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
depicted
Grant, Ulysses S.
referenced
Colfax, Schuyler
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1117
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1117

Abraham Lincoln Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1872. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1872. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign medals.
Obverse: Bust of Abraham Lincoln facing right. The legend reads: ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 1860. \
Reverse: The legend reads: FREEDOM NATIONAL SLAVERY SECTIONAL.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1872
depicted
Lincoln, Abraham
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1209
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1209

Ulysses S. Grant Campaign Badge

This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign badges.
This badge features a tintype photograph of Ulysses S. Grant set into a circular brass frame.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
depicted
Grant, Ulysses S.
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1091
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1091

Abraham Lincoln Commemorative Medal

This commemorative medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut in 1865.The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This commemorative medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut in 1865.The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign medals.
Obverse: Raised bust of Abraham Lincoln, facing right. The legend reads: SALVATOR PATRIAE.
Reverse: There is a wreath around the rim. Central legend reads: IN MEMORY OF THE LIFE ACTS AND DEATH OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN/ BORN FEBRUARY 12 1809/ DIED APRIL 16 1865.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1865
depicted
Lincoln, Abraham
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1569
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1569

Abraham Lincoln Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign medals.
Obverse: Profile image of Abraham Lincoln facing right. The legend reads: ABRAHAM LINCOLN 1860.
Reverse: Image of two men working in tandem to split logs. The legend reads: PROGRESS / 1830
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1860
depicted
Lincoln, Abraham
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1296
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1296

Lowe Press No. 2 press

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

Ulysses S. Grant Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign medals.
Obverse: Stacked busts of Ulysses Grant and Schuyler Colfax facing left. The legend reads: GRANT & COLFAX 1868.
Reverse: There is a wreath around the rim with a ribbon at the base. The central legend reads: “LET US HAVE PEACE.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
depicted
Grant, Ulysses S.
Colfax, Schuyler
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1570
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1570

Ship's Surgical Kit

This wooden surgical case with brass fittings has three main compartments, one of which is a tray that lifts out from the lower case. The interior of the case is molded so that each instrument has its own compartment. The entire interior is lined with purple velvet.
Description (Brief)
This wooden surgical case with brass fittings has three main compartments, one of which is a tray that lifts out from the lower case. The interior of the case is molded so that each instrument has its own compartment. The entire interior is lined with purple velvet. The exterior of the lid has an oval escutcheon which is marked, "U.S.A./ Hosp. Dept." The set includes 45 instruments, three of which are not original to the set. At least six instruments are missing, including four knives and a bandage scissors.
During the Civil War the United States Army contracted with several surgical instrument makers, including Herman Hernstein to provide surgical sets for the Union troops.
As a young boy in Germany Hermann Hernstein was apprenticed to a surgical instrument maker. He came to the United States in 1841 and settled in New York City. Within a few years, he had established his own shop.
According to Edmonson much of Hernstein’s inventory was imported from Europe.
Description
Surgical kits were not required on merchant vessels, but the larger and better-equipped ships often carried them. These were used for everything from pulling teeth to the amputation of limbs, and everything in between. Like the medicine chests, these kits too were often sold with simple pamphlets, with instructions and diagrams on how to use them in emergencies. The captain or first mate most commonly carried out any needed procedures.
date made
1862-1865
maker
Hermann Hernstein & Son
ID Number
1977.1103.01
accession number
1977.1103
catalog number
1977.1103.01

Giffard-Sellers Injector, Patent Model

This model was submitted to the U.S. Patent Office with the application for the patent issued to William Sellers, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 21, 1863, no.
Description
This model was submitted to the U.S. Patent Office with the application for the patent issued to William Sellers, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 21, 1863, no. 39313.
William Sellers, who introduced the Giffard injector into the United States in 1860, immediately invented useful improvements in its construction. This model incorporates an improvement in the packing between the steam and water chambers and effects a material reduction in the length of the whole injector.
Reference:
This description comes from the 1939 Catalog of the Mechanical Collections of the Division of Engineering United States Museum Bulletin 173 by Frank A. Taylor.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1860
patent date
1863-07-21
inventor
Sellers, William
ID Number
MC.309367
catalog number
309367
accession number
89797
patent number
39,313

Shlarbaum’s Patent Model of an Oscillating Steam Engine– ca 1863

This model was filed with the application to the U.S. Patent Office for Patent Number 39,756 issued to Hermann Shlarbaum of New York, New York on September 1, 1863. The patent was for an improvement in oscillating steam engines.
Description
This model was filed with the application to the U.S. Patent Office for Patent Number 39,756 issued to Hermann Shlarbaum of New York, New York on September 1, 1863. The patent was for an improvement in oscillating steam engines. An oscillating steam engine differs from a standard engine in that the steam cylinder is pivoted on the engine frame and oscillates back and forth about the pivot as its connecting rod operates the crankshaft of the engine. In a standard engine, the cylinder is fixed in orientation, and the piston rod moves fore and aft within a crosshead which allows the connecting rod to pivot independently as the crankshaft revolves.
Mr. Shlarbaum did not claim his overall design as new. Others had patented very similar designs. His claim was for the unique design of the steam and exhaust valves for the engine. The claimed benefits of this design included simplicity and economy of manufacture, operation and maintenance. The inventor also claimed that his design avoided having lubricating oil in the pivot being overheated by high pressure steam.
The patent model is constructed of cast iron and brass. All of the key elements of the patent are illustrated by the model to include the valve mechanism. A full description of the workings of the engine and diagrams showing the complete design of the patent can be found in the patent document online at the United States Patent and Trademark Office website, www.uspto.gov.
date made
ca 1863
patent date
1863-09-01
inventor
Shlarbaum, Herrmann
ID Number
MC.251293
catalog number
251293
patent number
39,756
accession number
48865

Patent Model of a Printing Apparatus for the Blind

This patent model demonstrates an invention for producing embossed letters on paper for communication between blind people; the invention was granted patent number 62206. Raised letters on plungers on a disk above the table were matched with sunken letter plungers below it.
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for producing embossed letters on paper for communication between blind people; the invention was granted patent number 62206. Raised letters on plungers on a disk above the table were matched with sunken letter plungers below it. The paper was squeezed between the two types of plungers by treadle force.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1867
patent date
1867-02-19
maker
Johnson, Daniel A.
ID Number
GA.89797.062206
patent number
062206
accession number
089797
catalog number
GA*89797.062206

Patent Model of a Lithographic Printing Press

This patent model demonstrates an invention for a self-inking scraper press, in which the stone was moved beneath the stationary scraper, was granted patent number 80771. The stone was dampened by hand.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a self-inking scraper press, in which the stone was moved beneath the stationary scraper, was granted patent number 80771. The stone was dampened by hand.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
patent date
1868-08-04
maker
Shackford, Amaziah G.
ID Number
GA.89797.080771
accession number
089797
patent number
080771
catalog number
GA*89797.080771

Stephen A. Douglas Campaign Medal

This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign medals.
Obverse: Bust of Stephen Douglas facing forward. The legend reads: STEPHEN A DOUGLAS.
Reverse: The legend reads: DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE FOR THE PRESIDENCY/THE CHAMPION OF POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1860
depicted
Douglas, Stephen A.
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1187
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1187

Abraham Lincoln Campaign Badge

This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1860. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer that is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign badges. This badge likely had a pin originally on its back, so it could be worn on an article of clothing.
Obverse: Tintype photograph of Abraham Lincoln. The photo is labeled “A. Lincoln.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1860
depicted
Lincoln, Abraham
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1106
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1106

Patent model for picture frames, assigned patent number 059836.

This patent model demonstrates an invention for a system of hooks and springs for attaching pictures to their frames; the invention was granted patent number 59836.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
This patent model demonstrates an invention for a system of hooks and springs for attaching pictures to their frames; the invention was granted patent number 59836.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1866
patent date
1866-11-20
patentee
Hanks, Stedman W.
ID Number
GA.89797.059836
patent number
059836
accession number
089797
catalog number
GA*89797.059836

Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Campaign Medal

This campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer, and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This campaign medal was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer, and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods like campaign medals. This medal has a quote issued by Grant during the Overland Campaign of the Civil War.
Obverse: Bust of Ulysses S. Grant facing forward, the legend reads: GENERAL U.S. GRANT.
Reverse: Legend reads: I PROPOSE TO FIGHT IT OUT ON THIS LINE IF IT TAKES ALL SUMMER.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
depicted
Grant, Ulysses S.
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1084
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1084

Ulysses S. Grant Campaign Badge

This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today.
Description (Brief)
This presidential campaign badge was made by the Scovill Manufacturing Company of Waterbury, Connecticut around 1868. The Scovill Company was established in 1802 as a button manufacturer and is still in business today. Scovill was an early industrial American innovator, adapting armory manufacturing processes to mass-produce a variety of consumer goods including buttons, daguerreotype mats, and campaign badges.
Obverse: Tintype photograph of Ulysses Grant, labeled GEN. U.S.GRANT. The tintype photograph is set into a rectangular frame with an oval cut-out revealing the photo.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1868
depicted
Grant, Ulysses S.
maker
Scovill Manufacturing Company
ID Number
1981.0296.1259
accession number
1981.0296
catalog number
1981.0296.1259

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