Sports & Leisure

• 1942 Victory Bicycle

  Description

  Soon after the United States entered World War II, the federal government decided that bicycles should be brought under consumer manufacturing guidelines so that they might support conservation efforts, local transportation, and the war production work force. A series of orders reduced bicycle design to bare essentials, limited metal and rubber content, set output quotas, promoted the use of bicycles among adult civilians, allocated bicycles for military use, and suspended production of children's bicycles, which comprised 85 percent of the prewar market. These measures were designed to conserve rubber and metals needed for war materiel and complement gasoline and automobile tire rationing by providing an alternate form of transportation for war production workers and other workers.

  In December 1941, the Office of Production Management and leading manufacturers developed specifications for a simplified bicycle dubbed the "Victory bicycle" by government and media. OPM reviewed several prototypes submitted for examination. Regulations finalized in March 1942 specified that bicycles would be lightweight - not more than 31 pounds, about two-thirds the weight of prewar bicycles - and they would be made of steel only, with no copper or nickel parts. Chrome plating was limited to a few small pieces of hardware. Handlebars and wheel rims would be painted instead of chrome plated, and most accessories (chain guard, basket, luggage rack, bell, whitewall tires) were eliminated. Tire size was limited to a width of 1.375 inches, narrower than balloon tires on prewar children's bikes. Production was set at 750,000 Victory bicycles per year by twelve manufacturers, approximately 40 percent of total prewar production but a significant increase in annual production of adult bicycles. The manufacture of all other types of civilian bicycles was halted.

  As a prelude to rationing, the federal government imposed a freeze on bicycle sales and allocated almost 10,000 bikes to war production plants for use by workers and messengers. By July 1942 the Office of Price Administration estimated that 150,000 Victory bicycles and 90,000 prewar bikes were available for retail sale. OPA rationed new and prewar men's and women's bicycles. Any adult who was gainfully employed or contributed in some way to the war effort or public welfare could purchase a bicycle if she or he could cite a compelling reason, such as inadequate public transportation, excessive walking, or responsibility for a delivery service. In August 1942 eligibility was further restricted to persons in critical occupations, including physicians, nurses, druggists, ministers, school teachers, mail carriers, firefighters, police officers, construction workers, delivery personnel, public safety officers, and others. By the summer of 1942, American Bicyclist and Motorcyclist reported that thousands of war production workers were riding bicycles to their jobs, and new and used bikes were in great demand. Some companies owned fleets of bicycles for work-related uses such as reading electric meters.

  Pauline Anderson of Norwalk, Connecticut was hired as a mathematics teacher at Norwalk High School in the fall of 1942 and purchased a Victory bicycle shortly thereafter. She lived with her parents, George and Flora Anderson, in a residential neighborhood two miles from downtown Norwalk. Pauline married Walter Dudding on November 26, 1942 but continued to live with her parents while her husband was serving in the Coast Guard. Mrs. Dudding rode the bicycle on errands and pleasure trips in the Norwalk area. It was a good form of supplemental transportation, but she didn't commute to work on the bike; she rode a bus or shared a ride with her father, who owned an automotive sales and repair shop in downtown Norwalk. The high school also was located downtown.

  Pauline Dudding's bicycle has all the features of a 1942 Victory bicycle. The handlebars have black paint instead of chrome plating, and the wheel rims are painted a tan color. The frame is painted red, white and blue. In keeping with a War Production Board order, there is no nameplate or other brand identification other than the letter "H" (for Huffman) stamped on the bottom of the crankcase beside the serial number. In September 1942 the number of authorized Victory bicycle manufacturers was reduced from twelve to two, and the WPB decided that "no firm left in a business from which others are excluded shall be permitted to spread its name over the land and in foreign countries" (Wall Street Journal, September 3, 1942).

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1942

  maker

  Huffman Manufacturing Company

  ID Number

  2006.0183.01

  accession number

  2006.0183

  catalog number

  2006.0183.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Baseball, signed by Negro League Players

  Description

  Baseball, signed by various Negro League stars. These players played the majority of their careers between 1935-1950.

  Autographs include Jimmie Crutchfield; Monte Irvin; Buck Leonard; Quincy Troppe; Chico Renfroe; Buck O'Neil; Connie Johnson; Chet Brewer; Pat Patterson; Satchel Paige; Joe Black; Minne Minoso; Judy Johnson; Andy Porter; Sammy T. Hughes; Hilton Smith; Newton Allen.

  signer

  Minoso, Minnie

  Johnson, Judy

  Porter, Andy

  Hughes, Sammy T.

  Irvin, Monte

  Leonard, Walter F.

  Trouppe, Quincy

  Renfroe, Chico

  O'Neil, Buck

  Johnson, Connie

  Brewer, Chet

  Patterson, Pat

  Black, Joe

  Allen, Newton

  Smith, Hilton

  Paige, Satchel

  Crutchfield, Jimmie

  maker

  Wilson Sporting Goods Company

  ID Number

  1981.0180.01

  catalog number

  1981.0180.01

  accession number

  1981.0180

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  1934 Trav-L-Coach house trailer

  Description

  The Cate family of Lakeport, New Hampshire purchased this trailer in 1936 to serve as their vacation home. Cars and highways had created vast new recreational opportunities, and during the Depression many families who were financially stable still enjoyed driving to remote scenic areas. The Cates, like other trailer owners, thought of touring as an extension of home life, and they could afford the security, comfort, and intimacy of a manufactured cottage on wheels.

  Eben Cate was a rural mail carrier on a route through several villages near Lake Winnipesaukee. He earned two weeks of vacation time per year. In 1936 he saw this trailer in a showroom in Laconia, a few miles from his home, and purchased it for pleasure trips. Eben and Vernie and their children, Rudolph and Virginia, made one trip to Florida in their new trailer in 1937, staying one night in many different locations. Every summer during the 1940s, they spent a week at Decatur Motor Camp at York Beach on the southern coast of Maine. They kept house in the trailer, went for walks, and swam in the Atlantic Ocean. Vernie did the housekeeping — not much of a vacation for her, but a change of scenery nonetheless. The Cates also visited Vernie's relatives in East Corinth, Vermont and parked the trailer "out near the barn" with an electrical hookup. The wooden trailer came equipped with a bedroom, sofa beds, table, kitchen, closets, and cupboards.

  House trailers were so appealing that thousands of itinerant people lived in them full-time in the 1930s. But early residential trailer camps had poor sanitary conditions and no landscaping. Some observers believed that traditional communities were threatened by the existence of these ad hoc, transient communities. Trailers created contradictory feelings of pride and disapproval —a far cry from the euphoric autocamping outings of the 1920s.

  Date made

  1934

  user

  Cate, Eben

  Cate, Vernie

  maker

  Trav-L-Coach

  ID Number

  1981.0524.01

  accession number

  1981.0524

  catalog number

  1981.0524.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Redskins Marching Band Patch

  Description (Brief)

  The Washington Redskins Marching Band was created after the National Football League team moved from Boston to Washington D.C. in 1938. Composed of an all-volunteer orchestra, the Redskins Band was a pioneer in half-time entertainment. 1938 also marked the introduction of the team's fight song "Hail to the Redskins."

  Location

  Currently not on view

  associated institution

  Washington Redskins

  ID Number

  1981.0768.20

  catalog number

  1981.0768.20

  accession number

  1981.0768

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Stapp-Chevrolet Sprint Car, 1973

  Description

  Dirt oval tracks, speeds of 90 miles per hour or more, and the relatively light weight of sprint cars combined to produce a spectacular racing style. Drivers maintain top speeds on turns, letting the rear wheels slide while balancing throttle and steering. Stapp Enterprises built this car in Brownsburg, Indiana. It has a Chevrolet V-8 engine, spring front, and torsion bar rear suspension. The transmission has only one speed, but the rear axle contains a quick-change section that allowed the mechanic to change the final gear ratio in the pits. This car raced on dirt tracks, primarily in Ohio and Indiana but as far south as Florida and as far east as Pennsylvania. Its most successful driver was Duane “Pancho” Carter, who won the 1974 United States Auto Club (USAC) championship. Other drivers include Johnny Rutherford, Jackie Howerton, and Terry White.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1973

  maker

  Stapp Enterprises

  ID Number

  1981.0814.01

  accession number

  1981.0814

  catalog number

  1981.0814.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Billiard Balls

  Description

  This is a set of three Bakelite billiard balls, in its original wooden box. The balls were made by the Hyatt-Burroughs Billiard Ball Co. of Newark, N.J. The date of manufacture is unknown. The label on the box states that "Bakelite Billiard balls are of the same resilience as the best ivory balls. 2-3/8 inch balls weigh exactly seven ounces, are of exact diameter, are perfectly and permanently round and balanced, unaffected by climactic conditions, and are practically indestructible."

  date made

  after 1907

  after 1910

  invented hyatt billiard ball

  Hyatt, John Wesley

  patentee of bakelite

  Baekeland, L. H.

  maker

  Hyatt-Burroughs Billiard Ball Company

  ID Number

  1981.0976.01

  catalog number

  1981.0976.01

  accession number

  1981.0976

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Badminton Set

  Description

  This badminton set from the early 20th century was produced by the Abercrombie and Fitch Company. Badminton clubs were organized in the United States as early as 1878, but the sport didn't become truly popular in the nation until the 1930s.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  user

  Patterson, Mary Marvin Breckinridge

  maker

  Abercrombie & Fitch Co.

  ID Number

  1982.0110.24

  accession number

  1982.0110

  catalog number

  1982.0110.24

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Otto Moore Basketball Card

  Description

  This Otto Moore basketball card is number 70 in a series of 264 that was manufactured by the Topps Company Inc. for the 1972-1973 National Basketball Association (NBA) season. The front of the card features a posed picture of the Houston Rockets center on a pink background. The card’s reverse features a small cartoon image illustrating the factoid that “Otto has gained over 20 pounds since entering NBA,” as well as a short biography and career statistics.

  Moore played nine seasons in the NBA for the Detroit Pistons, Phoenix Suns, Houston Rockets, Kansas City-Omaha Kings, and New Orleans Jazz. The center averaged 8.2 points and 8.2 rebounds during his 682 game-career.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1972

  copyright date

  1969

  publisher

  Topps Chewing Gum

  NBA Properties, Inc.

  depicted

  Moore, Otto

  maker

  Topps Chewing Gum

  NBA Properties, Inc.

  ID Number

  1982.0568.095

  accession number

  1982.0568

  catalog number

  1982.0568.095

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Elmore Smith Basketball Card

  Description

  This Elmore Smith basketball card is number 76 in a series of 264 that was manufactured by the Topps Company Inc. for the 1972-1973 National Basketball Association (NBA) season. The front of the card features a posed picture of the Buffalo Braves center on a pink background. The card’s reverse features a small cartoon image illustrating the factoid that “Elmore is first 7-footer to play for Braves,” as well as a short biography and career statistics.

  Elmore played in the NBA from 1971-1979 as a member of the Buffalo Braves, Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Cleveland Cavaliers. Elmore led the league in blocks in 1974 with an average of 4.9 per game, which remains the third-highest ever recorded for a single season. Smith also set the single-game record for blocks with 17 in a 1973 game against Portland.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1972

  copyright date

  1973

  publisher

  NBA Properties, Inc.

  Topps Chewing Gum

  depicted

  Smith, Elmore

  maker

  Topps Company, Inc.

  NBA Properties, Inc.

  ID Number

  1982.0568.108

  accession number

  1982.0568

  catalog number

  1982.0568.108

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Harlem Globetrotters Card

  Description

  This Harlem Globetrotters card is number 82 in a series of 84 featuring the Harlem Globetrotter basketball team that was issued by the Fleer Corporation in 1972. The front of the card features an image of an unidentified Harlem Globetrotters player. The card’s reverse features the history of the Globetrotters, detailing the players that played for the first team in 1927.

  The Harlem Globetrotters—originally called the Savoy Big Five—were founded in 1927 as a promotion for the Savoy Ballroom nightclub in Chicago. The team soon changed their name to associate themselves with the African-American cultural movement known as the Harlem Renaissance. This gave the Globetrotters the prestige of being associated with Harlem, while also letting white Midwestern audiences know what to expect when the team came to town. Before the advent and rise of the NBA, the Globetrotters drove to small towns in the Midwest and played competitive games against other semi professional teams in a practice known as “barnstorming.” The Globetrotters soon became one of the America’s best teams, and they began to incorporate “The Show” into their games to keep the score close. As the years went by, these tricks and comedic routines became the centerpiece of Globetrotter games that they are still known for today.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1971

  associated institution

  Harlem Globetrotters

  publisher

  Harlem Globetrotters, Inc.

  Fleer Corp.

  maker

  Fleer Corp.

  Harlem Globetrotters, Inc.

  ID Number

  1982.0568.134

  accession number

  1982.0568

  catalog number

  1982.0568.134

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Tom Boerwinkle Basketball Card

  Description

  This Tom Boerwinkle basketball card is number 68 in a series of 175 that was manufactured by the Topps Company Inc. for the 1970-1971 National Basketball Association season. The card is longer than standard cards, measuring 2½ inches by 4 ¾ inches. The front of the card features a posed picture of the Chicago Bulls center on a yellow background. The card’s reverse features a small cartoon image illustrating the factoid that “At 7’-0” Tom is still growing,” as well as a short biography and career statistics.

  It is apparent Boerwinkle is wearing his warm-ups on this card, which looks strange compared to modern cards but was common in basketball cards until the early 1970s. It is believed that the player’s would forfeit their fee to the team if the team name appeared so many players wore their jerseys backwards, wore their warm-ups, or posed in such a way to obscure the team name.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1970

  depicted

  Boerwinkle, Tom

  maker

  Topps Company, Inc.

  ID Number

  1982.0568.382

  catalog number

  1982.0568.382

  accession number

  1982.0568

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  5 Mile Handicap Road Run Trophy, won by Jim Thorpe

  Description (Brief)

  Oklahoma native Jim Thorpe (1888-1953) was awarded this trophy in 1914 for winning the 5 Mile Handicap Road Run held by the Bronxdale Athletic Club.

  Thorpe, of mixed European and Native American descent, is considered one of the greatest-overall athletes in United States history. He was a star for the Carlisle Indian Industrial School, where he attained All-American honors in football. He went on to represent the United States at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, winning gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon. Thorpe went on to play professional football, baseball and basketball.

  Thorpe's Olympic victories were revoked when it was discovered that he had made money playing semi-pro baseball, forfeiting his status as an amateur. The medals were reinstated to his family in 1983.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1914

  associated person

  Thorpe, Jim

  ID Number

  1982.0575.01

  accession number

  1982.0575

  catalog number

  1982.0575.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Baseball, signed by the 1924 Washington Senators

  Description

  Baseball signed by the 1924 Washington Senators. That year the Senators finished 92-62, 1st in the American League, winning the 1924 World Series over the New York Giants 4 games to 3.

  Autographs include By Speece; Ossie Bluege; Wild Matthews; Walter Johnson; Lloyd Brown.

  date made

  1924

  associated institution

  The Washington Senators

  ID Number

  1984.0201.01

  accession number

  1984.0201

  catalog number

  1984.0201.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Baseball, signed by the 1965 Los Angeles Dodgers

  Description

  Baseball signed by the 1965 Los Angeles Dodgers. That season the Dodgers finished 97-65, 1st in the National League, winning the World Series over the Minnesota Twins 4 games to 3.

  Autographs include Ron Fairly; Nate Oliver; Howie Reed; John Kennedy; Sandy Koufax; Don LeJohn; Maury Willis; Ron Perranoski; Hector Valle; Bill Singer; Jim Lefebvre; Derell Griffith; Jeff Torborg; Bob Miller; Lefty Phillips; Nick Willhite; Claude Osteen; Wally Moon.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1965

  associated institution

  Los Angeles Dodgers

  maker

  Spalding

  ID Number

  1984.0228.01

  accession number

  1984.0228

  catalog number

  1984.0228.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Baseball, signed by Don Drysdale

  Description

  Baseball autographed by Don Drysdale (1936-1993). The right handed pitcher played for the Brooklyn/ Los Angeles Dodgers from 1956-1969. Drysdale finished his career with a win-loss record of 209-166, having been named to nine All-Star Teams and receiving the Cy Young Award in 1962. He was a contributor to three World Series Champion Dodger teams (1959, 1963 and 1965). Drysdale has had his number 53 retired by the Los Angeles Dodgers, and was elected into Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame in 1984.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1960s

  associated institution

  Los Angeles Dodgers

  signer

  Drysdale, Don

  maker

  Spalding

  ID Number

  1984.0228.02

  accession number

  1984.0228

  catalog number

  1984.0228.02

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Creeping Baby Doll Patent Model

  Description

  This model demonstrates the invention of a mechanical crawling doll. It accompanied the patent submission of George Pemberton Clarke, who received U.S. patent No. 118,435 on 29 August 1871 for his “Natural Creeping Baby Doll.” The original patent office tag is still attached with red tape. Clarke’s patent was an improvement on the crawling baby doll patent of his associate Robert J. Clay (No. 112,550 granted 14 March 1871).

  The doll’s head, two arms and two legs are made of painted plaster. The arms and legs are hinged to a brass clockwork body that actuates the arms and legs in imitation of crawling, but the doll moves forward by rolling along on two toothed wheels. A flat piece of wood is attached to top of the movement.

  A commercial version of the doll is also in the collection. See also Cat. 2011.0204.01

  This mechanical toy is part of a fascinating continuum of figures built to imitate human life. This long Western tradition stretches from ancient Greece through the mechanical automatons of the Enlightenment, through wind-up toys to contemporary robots and other machines with artificial intelligence.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1871

  patent date

  1871-08-29

  inventor

  Clarke, George P.

  ID Number

  1984.0923.01

  accession number

  1984.0923

  catalog number

  1984.0923.01

  patent number

  118,435

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Richard Petty's 200th Victory Car

  Description

  This Pontiac No. 43 — that number was Richard Petty's hallmark, as No. 42 was for his father's cars — follows the 1984 design rules. Note the tubular space-frame, specially built body, racing wheels and tires, and safety gear in the interior. Like current NASCAR racers, its engine is not fuel-injected but uses carburetion. The car carried Petty to victory in the "Firecracker 400" race at Daytona, on July 4, 1984. The car ran one more race that year, the Talledega 500 on July 29th, but did not finish, retiring with a broken differential immediately after its first pit stop. The car owner was Curb Motorsports, owned by Mike Curb, of the family owning Canon Mills and president of Curb Records. The car was repainted by the crew of Petty Enterprises, Randleman, before presentation to the Smithsonian in late 1984. The car is configured for the last time it ran, at the 1984 Talledega race, and has that engine installed. The tires, however, are Daytona tires.

  A uniquely American type of auto racing is "stock car" racing. Bill France, of Daytona Beach, Florida, had witnessed the popularity of pre-war "beach racing." In the late 1940s, he organized beach races for car-owners who liked the idea of competing against each other with more-or-less "stock" automobiles. To help him set rules for stock-car racing, France created the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, NASCAR, in 1948. In 1953, France opened a new Daytona Speedway. NASCAR came of age in 1959, with the first running of the Daytona 500 - which was won by Lee Petty, Richard Petty's father, a three-time NASCAR national champion in his own right, during the 1950s.

  Richard Petty, of Randleman, NC, began his racing in the early 1960s, winning his first Daytona 500 and first of seven NASCAR national championships in 1964. NASCAR racing in the 1960s consisted of many more top-rank (i.e., Grand National, Winston Cup, and now renamed Nextel Cup) races per year than today. The norm in the 1960s was some 50 or more such races a year. In 1967, Richard Petty won 27 of these (out of 48 races, which included winning 10-straight) to set an all-time record for the most victories in a season. Over his 35-year career, his record of 200 Grand National/Winston Cup racing wins is very likely never to be equaled. (In comparison, the driver with the second-highest total of wins in NASCAR races is David Pearson, with 105 over a 26-year career.)

  By the 1980s, NASCAR race-car design rules had changed radically since NASCAR's first season in 1949. That year, NASCAR's series ran under "strictly stock" rules. Cars were - or were supposed to be - unaltered from production cars. But that idea ran counter to the decades-long "tradition" among auto racers of cheating under the hood and in the chassis, i.e., adding hidden changes to the engine and suspension to make the car a better performer. Bill France decided to allow certain modifications to both a car's stock engine and its chassis, and to enforce strict discipline against cheating by employing - to look over each car and its engine in detail before each race - a bevy of inspectors answerable to France. The race series was renamed the Grand National series in 1950, and occasional cheating was not, of course, entirely eliminated. Over the years, more and more departures from "stock" components were permitted by the frequently evolving rule changes - the objective of the rule changes, nearly every time, was to let the cars average faster speeds (which brought in more fans), while at the same time trying to eliminate unfair advantages among the cars (close racing, being more exciting, pleased the fans; a race season dominated by just a few drivers that could "run away from the field" in almost every race decreased both fan interest and the interest of other race-car owners to enter their cars).

  By the 1980s, NASCAR race cars were no longer "stock" at all, being entirely purpose-built, with non-stock tubular space-frames eliminating the stock frame, specially designed springing, 700-horsepower engines in which only the stripped, basic block was "stock," and — significantly — added safety and fire-suppression equipment.

  Only the basic shape of the hand-made body had to follow the lines of the stock model being represented. "Spoilers" - the lateral flap added to the rear of the "trunk" - used wind to keep the rear of the car down at high speed; headlights became decals; doors didn't exist (the driver climbed-in through the left-hand window opening). Today's NASCAR race cars have even dispensed with following a production car's body lines; the smoothly shaped front-ends of the race cars are designed to reduce wind resistance to a practical minimum. The NASCAR race-car design rules rigidly enforced today are, by far, the most complex of any motorsport; these rules are designed to equalize the cars as much as possible, to provide close, competitive racing.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  Date made

  1984

  user

  Petty, Richard

  maker

  Petty Enterprises

  ID Number

  1985.0009.01

  accession number

  1985.0009

  catalog number

  1985.0009.01

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Bernice Palmer's Kodak Brownie camera

  Description

  Sometime around her 17th birthday, Canadian Bernice Palmer received a Kodak Brownie box camera, either for Christmas 1911 or for her birthday on 10 January 1912. In early April, she and her mother boarded the Cunard liner Carpathia in New York, for a Mediterranean cruise. Carpathia had scarcely cleared New York, when it received a distress call from the White Star liner Titanic on 14 April. It raced to the scene of the sinking and managed to rescue over 700 survivors from the icy North Atlantic. With her new camera, Bernice took pictures of the iceberg that sliced open the Titanic’s hull below the waterline and also took snapshots of some of the Titanic survivors. Lacking enough food to feed both the paying passengers and Titanic survivors, the Carpathia turned around and headed back to New York to land the survivors. Unaware of the high value of her pictures, Bernice sold publication rights to Underwood & Underwood for just $10 and a promise to develop, print, and return her pictures after use. In 1986, she donated her camera, the pictures and her remarkable story to the Smithsonian.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  ca 1912

  user

  Ellis, Bernice P.

  maker

  Eastman Kodak Company

  ID Number

  1986.0173.38

  accession number

  1986.0173

  catalog number

  1986.0173.38

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Plate 76. A Fancy Group - Scene in Front of Petersburg

  Description

  Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by David Knox, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.

  The monotony of camp life was relieved by every variety of amusement that was known, or could be devised. During the periods of inactivity, base ball, cricket, gymnastics, foot races, &c., were indulged in to a great extent, and on holidays horse races, foot races, and other games were allowed. Sometimes the men would put up a greased pole, with a prize on the top, for anyone who succeeded in climbing up to it, and not unfrequently a pig would be turned loose with a shaved and greased tail, for the men to catch. Any grip but a "tail hold" was illegitimate, but he who seized and held the pig by this appendage, carried it off in triumph to his mess.

  Cock fighting, however, was quite unusual, and seldom permitted, except when some of the contrabands incited their captured Shanghais, or more ignoble fowls, to combat. Such displays were always ludicrous, and were generally exhibited for the amusement of the mess for whom the feathered bipeds were intended. Horses and mules perished by hundreds from ill-usage, but with thin exception it would be exceedingly difficult to cite an instance of cruelty to animals in the army. Fowls, dogs, kittens, and even wild animals, were made pets of, and were cared for most tenderly. Sometimes a regiment would adopt a dog, and woe to the individual who ventured to maltreat it. Several of the Western regiments carried pet bears with them, and one regiment was accompanied by a tame eagle in all its campaigns.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1864-08

  maker

  Gardner, Alexander

  ID Number

  1986.0711.0283.26

  accession number

  1986.0711

  catalog number

  1986.0711.0283.26

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

• 

  Plate 50. The Halt, scene near Culpeper

  Description

  Text and photograph from Gardner's Photographic Sketchbook of the War, Vol. II. Negative by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, text and positive by Alexander Gardner.

  "Cigars and cognac, with these we bivouac," says the old song, but as Cognac was, in the army, a questionable fluid, to say the least of it, and scarce at that, the lounger in the grass wisely contented himself with the pleasures of the weed. His good war-steed, in condition highly creditable to the groom, patiently accepts the opportunity to rest, evidently affording an object of critical admiration to his master, whose orderly meanwhile keeps an eye about the vicinity. There is nothing particular in the picture to account for this little halt, but those who recognize the officer, may possibly give a shrewd guess at his reasons. He is the Quartermaster of the Headquarters of the Army of the Potomac, and has doubtless ridden forward to the position selected for camp, to examine its capabilities, and await the arrival of his wagon-train, in order to personally superintend the pitching of the tents, and the parking of the wagons.

  To still further satisfy curiosity, it may be mentioned that the reclining officer is Captain Harry Page, since Colonel and Chief Quartermaster of the Cavalry Corps, one of the most arduous posts of duty in the service, and one whose necessities during the severe campaigns up the Shenandoah Valley, and in the vicinity of Richmond, kept the young Colonel always upon his mettle.

  Location

  Currently not on view

  date made

  1864-05

  maker

  Gardner, Alexander

  ID Number

  1986.0711.0334.50

  accession number

  1986.0711

  catalog number

  1986.0711.0334.50

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

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