Rectangular box with built-in coin slot at center of the flat lid; scrolled hasp lock on front and two hinges at back. Lid is made of one piece with wire-rolled rim. Box is made of five pieces with soft-soldered, folded edges; top edge of front and sides are folded down with a wire bead below. Traces of flaking black paint on exterior. Tinned interior. No marks. Box and padlock DL*245425.0078-.0079 were used together.

Collection boxes have been used for centuries to solicit money for religious institutions and charities. Even those with little to spare might contribute coins anonymously to a strategically placed box. Unfamiliar in some American communities in the 1700s, these boxes became more commonly used in the United States in the 1800s.