Measuring & Mapping

Where, how far, and how much? People have invented an astonishing array of devices to answer seemingly simple questions like these. Measuring and mapping objects in the Museum's collections include the instruments of the famous—Thomas Jefferson's thermometer and a pocket compass used by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on their expedition across the American West. A timing device was part of the pioneering motion studies of Eadweard Muybridge in the late 1800s. Time measurement is represented in clocks from simple sundials to precise chronometers for mapping, surveying, and finding longitude. Everyday objects tell part of the story, too, from tape measures and electrical meters to more than 300 scales to measure food and drink. Maps of many kinds fill out the collections, from railroad surveys to star charts.

An advertising novelty for American Saw & Mfg. Co., maker of Lenox saws. The ruler is a twelve-inch folding ruler made of ivory-grained celluloid.
Description (Brief)
An advertising novelty for American Saw & Mfg. Co., maker of Lenox saws. The ruler is a twelve-inch folding ruler made of ivory-grained celluloid. It's marked in inches and centimeters.
Description
Folding 12-inch celluloid ruler marked in inches and centimeters, with inscriptions that read “AMERICAN SAW & MFG. CO. / SPRINGFIELD, MASS., U.S.A.” and “LENOX / HACK / SAWS.” Inscriptions on the back identify Lenox as “The Blade in the Plaid Box.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1915-1930
maker
Whitehead and Hoag Company
ID Number
2006.0098.1700
catalog number
2006.0098.1700
accession number
2006.0098
An advertising novelty for Wray Pump & Register Co., and their selling agent, Brandenburg & Co. It unfolds like a carpenter's rule and has advertising and useful data on engines and tire pressure printed on both sides.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An advertising novelty for Wray Pump & Register Co., and their selling agent, Brandenburg & Co. It unfolds like a carpenter's rule and has advertising and useful data on engines and tire pressure printed on both sides.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1905
maker
Bastian Brothers Company
ID Number
2006.0098.1103
accession number
2006.0098
catalog number
2006.0098.1103

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.