Energy & Power

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  Man's Trousers, 1878-88

  Description

  In 1883 the United States participated in a sort of world’s fair of fishing called The London International Fisheries Exhibition, held at the Royal Horticulture Society in London. Congress instructed the U. S. Commissioner of Fisheries to prepare “a complete and systematic representative exhibition of the fisheries of the United States,” to be presented under the auspices of the Department of State and to draw upon the resources of the Smithsonian Institution. It would be an understatement to say that the resulting exhibit was comprehensive. It dealt with the biology of marine and freshwater animals of all species, the geography of American fishing fields, the technology of fishing equipment and food processing, the science of deep sea research, the demographics of people involved in the fishing industry, and the anthropology of fishermen and anglers, which included a study of their games, hobbies, and appearance.

  These trousers were displayed in the “Section E. – XXII. FISHERMEN AND ANGLERS” portion of the United States entry at the Exhibition. It featured large photographs, anglers’ apparel, a collection of fishermen’s wool and oiled cotton, rubber apparel such as mittens and boots, and “Lay figures [or mannequins] of fishermen of different classes, showing costumes."

  This pair of trousers is made from heavy-duty cotton, woven in a small-scale plaid of brown, tan, red, and orange. The trousers have a 9” concealed two-button fly, a back yoke, and a waistband that originally had six suspender buttons as well as a button and buttonhole at the center front above the fly. One of the four front suspender buttons is now missing. A pair of short belts sewn to the back yoke span a V-shaped vent at the center back of the yoke and waistband. The left belt ends with a black japanned metal buckle.

  The cutting and sewing techniques used here were very simple, and suggest that these trousers were inexpensive factory-made goods. All buttons are made of white metal pressed over a molded form, with four holes in a slightly dished center surrounded by a textured rim. All seams were sewn with brown thread, and all buttons were attached with off-white thread. There was no attempt to turn under any edge, raw or selvedge, except along the ½” hem at each ankle. Each slightly tapered pant leg was cut in one piece and double top-stitched along the inseam. Most other seams and edges are top-stitched with a single line of stitching. The muslin pocket bag over each hip was inserted into an almost vertical slit cut into each side of the trousers just below the waistband; a dart extends 1.5” beyond the lower end of each pocket to reinforce it. The trouser legs are cut with the grain of the fabric running up and down, while the waistband, back yoke, and back belts are cut with the grain going sideways. This is made obvious by the fact that the red stripes in the fabric appear only in the cross-wise weft threads, while the orange stripes appear only in the vertical warp. The fabric has a vertical repeat of 1.0625” and a horizontal repeat of 0.75”. The waist measure, excluding the back vent, is 38.75”, and the overall length is 42.125”.

  To read the catalog of the London International Fisheries Exhibition, including a description of the American exhibits that were on display, link to The Fisheries Exhibition Literature. Volume XII. Official catalogue. Awards of the International Juries (London: William Clowes and Sons, 1884).

  This Web entry was made possible in part by a generous grant from The National Association of Men’s Sportswear Buyers, in memory of Joseph S. Klein.

  Date made

  1883

  date made

  1878-1888

  1878-1883

  ID Number

  CS.310128.022

  catalog number

  310128.022

  accession number

  310128

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whaler's Shoulder or Darting Gun

  Description

  By the later 19th century, guns had replaced most hand harpoons and lances, since they were far more efficient and deadly to the prey. They also could be shot from a safer distance from the prey than the hand tools could be wielded. The darting gun was one of the more popular types. Loaded with different darts, this versatile weapon could be used both for harpooning and killing whales.

  This particular gun was displayed at the 1883 International Fisheries Exhibition in London, England. After the display ended, it was donated to the Smithsonian by its inventor, Capt. Eben Pierce of New Bedford, Mass.

  date made

  1880s

  guns replaced hand tools

  late 19th century

  displayed at the International Fisheries Exhibition

  1883

  maker

  Pierce, Eben

  ID Number

  TR.316550

  catalog number

  316550

  accession number

  66767

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whaler's Fluke Lance

  Description

  The most dangerous act in the dangerous business of whaling was “spading flukes.” The whaleboat drew up close alongside a desperate, unpredictable whale on the water surface, and a crewman used a boat spade or fluke lance to sever the whale’s tail tendons. This effectively immobilized the prey, for the whale couldn’t swim without its tail.

  According to James Temple Brown, who wrote the 1883 catalog of the Smithsonian’s whaling collection, the fluke lance was exceedingly rare and was regarded as “a monstrosity by all the fraternity”. This rare inscribed example was used aboard the starboard whaleboat of the bark Sea Fox.

  Date made

  ca 1880-1889

  authored whaling reference material

  Brown, James Temple

  maker

  Driggs, James D.

  ID Number

  TR.056358

  catalog number

  056358

  accession number

  012298

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Mackerel Plow (Knife)

  Description

  Used by New England fishermen aboard mackerel schooners in the 19th century, this unusual tool converted poor “leather-bellies” to fat “Number 1” fish with a few short strokes. Mackerel caught in seines at the beginning of the season—in spring and early summer—were generally lean, dry, and tough, and not worth much at market. But fishermen found a way to plump them up to command a higher price. After splitting a scrawny mackerel down its back with a larger knife, a fisherman would make several slashes parallel to the backbone with the small blade of the plow. Like plowing furrows on land, the slashes opened the flesh, causing the fish to swell and look fat, which could bring a higher price.

  Fishermen typically had their own mackerel plows, which were widely variable in size and design. All were handmade of wood and had very small metal blades. Many, like this one, had an open handle that fit the hand of its user. This example is embellished with pewter inlays, including five-pointed stars and the initials “EB,” presumably to identify its owner.

  Date made

  1880s

  ID Number

  TR.029368

  catalog number

  029368

  accession number

  12679

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Cod Hand-line

  Description

  Manufactured in Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1882, this hand-line is of the type used in the 19th-century cod fisheries on Banquereau Bank, Grand Bank, and Western Bank in the North Atlantic. The wooden reel contains about 25 fathoms (150 feet) of 12-pound cotton line. A 4-pound lead sinker with brass fittings attaches to a bridle and two short lines (called “snoods”), with slot swivels at the ends. The swivels hold two hemp “gangings” and hooks. This rig saved time in removing fish and re-baiting because the fisherman could slip the gangings from the swivels and replace them with new line and freshly-baited hooks. The preferred bait for the cod fishery was frozen herring in winter and fresh herring, mackerel, alewives, and menhaden the rest of the year.

  Fishermen used hand-lines when fishing from the decks of schooners anchored across the tide. They stood at the rail, all on the side of the vessel opposite from the side hit by the tide. This allowed the lines to drift out from the schooner for more effective fishing.

  In “The George’s Bank Cod Fishery,” G. Brown Goode and J. W. Collins (1882) reported that when the fish were plentiful, fishermen often caught a pair of cod, one on each hook, and that a man could catch between 100 and 200 fish per day. At other times, a whole day’s effort might yield only three or four fish. From The Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States, Sec. IV. (Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1882) p. 194.

  date made

  1880

  1800s

  ID Number

  TR.054503

  catalog number

  054503

  accession number

  12679

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Knife

  Description

  A knife was an essential tool on a whaleboat, where the quick cutting of a tangled line snagged on a man’s ankle or on an object in the boat could mean the difference between life or death.

  Date made

  1880s

  ID Number

  TR.103026

  catalog number

  103026

  accession number

  12328

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Ship Model, Lighthouse Tender Joseph Henry

  Description

  This model represents the U.S. Lighthouse Tender Joseph Henry, a side-wheeled steamer built by Howard & Company in Jeffersonville, Indiana, in 1880. This 180-foot-long vessel was built for service along the nation’s inland waterways. Lighthouse tenders served both coastal and inland areas by delivering supplies, fuel, news, and relief and maintenance crew to lighthouses and lightships. They also maintained aids to navigation, including markers identifying channels, shoals, and obstructions. Based out of Memphis, the Joseph Henry worked along the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers until 1904.

  The vessel’s namesake, Joseph Henry, was America’s foremost scientist in the 19th century. His expertise was in the field of electromagnetism. Henry was a professor at the College of New Jersey (Princeton) when he was named the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, a position he held from 1846 until his death in 1878. He also served on the U.S. Lighthouse Board (1852-78), and implemented various improvements in lighting and signaling during his tenure. This lighthouse tender was named in his honor at its launching two years after his death.

  Date made

  1880

  1962

  used

  late 19th century

  ID Number

  TR.321486

  catalog number

  321486

  accession number

  245714

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Rigged Model, Sidewheel Cotton Packet J.M. White

  Description

  The Mississippi River sidewheel steamboat J.M. White was built at Jeffersonville, Ind., in 1878 for the Greenville and New Orleans Packet Company. Measuring 321’ long and 91’ in beam across the paddlebox guards, the White only sat 10’-6” deep in the water when fully laden. The steamboat was designed for Mississippi River packet service between New Orleans, La., and Greenville, Miss.

  The White was one of the largest, most expensive, luxurious, and most powerful river steamers ever built, with 2,800 horsepower and a capacity of 250 first-class passengers and 10,000 bales of cotton. Named after famous riverboat captain J. M. White (1823–1880), the “supreme triumph in cotton boat architecture” was a masterpiece of the gaudy, glamorous style known as “steamboat Gothic.” It had multiple bridal chambers; stained glass skylights and windows; rare wood veneers and gilded finishes; seven gilded “Egyptian-style” chandeliers; a sterling silver Tiffany water cooler in the 250’-long main cabin; monogrammed flatware and china; and a full concert grand piano.

  The White spent most of its eight-year career in service on the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Vicksburg, Miss. Despite its economy of size, the White’s high initial $220,000 cost, a spotty economy, and the rapidly expanding railroad network made the steamboat unprofitable. It caught fire, blew up, and burned to the waterline at a Louisiana landing in December 1886, killing several aboard.

  Date made

  1974

  built

  1878

  used date

  late 19th century

  ID Number

  TR.334847

  catalog number

  334847

  accession number

  315419

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Ship Model, Chesapeake Bay Log Canoe

  Description

  This model of a Chesapeake Bay log canoe was built in 1880 and displayed at the Great International Fisheries Exhibition in London in 1883. It shows a two-masted log canoe with a mustard-colored hull. Although this model may look more like a recreational sailboat than a traditional paddling canoe, its roots can be traced back to the dugouts built and used by American Indians. Native Americans along the bay used dugouts, made by hollowing out a single tree trunk, to spear fish, gather oysters, and travel from one village to another. Europeans adopted the log-canoe technology shortly after arriving in the region in the early 1600s. By the start of the 18th century, colonists had modified the standard, single-log dugout, by hewing and shaping several logs and fitting them together to enlarge the craft. They added masts and sails, providing the means to travel farther and giving the vessels their distinctive appearance.

  Despite the widespread use of frame-and-plank shipbuilding techniques around the Chesapeake, watermen continued building and using log canoes well into the 20th century. The canoes were ideal for oyster tonging in the many protected creeks and rivers that flow into the bay. This model includes a pair of hand tongs of the sort made by local blacksmiths for oystermen. A waterman would anchor his canoe over an oyster bed and lower the tongs into the water. With a scissoring motion, he would rake the tongs together until the iron basket was full and ready to be lifted onboard.

  In terms of construction, the log canoe is the forerunner to the bugeye, which is essentially an enlarged canoe built of seven or nine logs with a full deck added over the hold. While log canoes are no longer used in commercial fishing, they can still be seen in special sailboat races on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake.

  date made

  1880

  Date made

  1875

  ID Number

  TR.25003

  catalog number

  025003

  accession number

  4586

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Ship Model, Schooner Fredonia

  Description

  This model represents the fishing schooner Fredonia, designed by the well-known yacht designer Edward Burgess of Boston. Burgess designed several America’s Cup racing yachts, including the Puritan, the Mayflower, and the Volunteer, which successfully defended the cup in 1885, 1886, and 1887, respectively. From Burgess’s plans, Moses Adams built the Fredonia in 1889, at Essex, Mass. The schooner measured 111’-6” long, with a beam (width) of 23’-6”, and a depth of 10’-3”. Adams also built the schooner Nellie Dixon from the same plans in East Boston that year.

  After launching, the Fredonia was used as a yacht and made a transatlantic cruise before being refitted for work in the offshore fisheries. The vessel became known for its speed, and attracted attention for its fine lines. Its clipper-style bow with carved trail boards led to a long bowsprit (a spar extending forward from the bow that carried the jib). The design influenced fishing schooners for years to come, and vessels built on the Fredonia model came to represent the quintessential New England fishing schooner.

  The Fredonia’s influence belied its short life. In 1896 the vessel met with disaster while fishing for cod on the Grand Banks. During a December storm the Fredonia sank, with all but two of its crew of 23 saved by other schooners fishing in the area.

  date made

  1889

  ship built

  1889

  ship sank

  1896-12

  designer

  Burgess, Edward

  shipbuilder

  Adams, Moses

  ID Number

  TR.076253

  catalog number

  076253

  accession number

  28022

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Man's Shirt, 1878–88

  Description

  In 1883, the United States participated in a sort of world’s fair of fishing called The London International Fisheries Exhibition, held at the Royal Horticulture Society in London. Congress instructed the U.S. Commissioner of Fisheries to prepare “a complete and systematic representative exhibition of the fisheries of the United States,” to be presented under the auspices of the Department of State and to draw upon the resources of the Smithsonian Institution.

  It would be an understatement to say that the resulting exhibit was comprehensive. It dealt with the biology of marine and freshwater animals of all species, the geography of American fishing fields, the technology of fishing equipment and food processing, the science of deep sea research, the demographics of people involved in the fishing industry, and the anthropology of fishermen and anglers, which included a study of their games, hobbies, and appearance.

  This shirt was displayed in the “Section E. – XXII. FISHERMEN AND ANGLERS” portion of the United States entry at the Exhibition. It featured large photographs, anglers’ apparel, a collection of fishermen’s wool and oiled cotton and rubber apparel such as mittens and boots, and “Lay figures [or mannequins] of fishermen of different classes, showing costumes." A note attached to the shirt when it came to the National Museum at the end of the exhibition states that it was of a type “Worn chiefly by cooks on fisheries vessels and others also in the summer.”

  The long-sleeved pull-over shirt is made of cotton woven in a small plaid of white and orange threads on a blue ground. The orange threads appear only in the warp. The unshaped shirt body is cut of one length of fabric from the back hem to the front hem, so that there is no seam over the shoulders. The rectangular collar is double-thickness, folded on the outer edge and seamed on the sides, and is three inches wide before being turned over when worn.

  One pair of eyelets is worked on the collar at the front neck, directly above ten pairs of worked eyelets along both sides of the shirt body’s ten-inch-long neck opening. The eyelets are laced with an orange cotton cord. The tapered sleeves are set onto the straight edge of the body, and each has a cuff with one small, four-holed, wide-rimmed white china button sewn onto its front. The back body of the shirt is eased into the collar. The corners of the front and back shirt-tails are rounded below short side vents. The center back length of the shirt body is 32.75 in. (83.19 cm).

  To read the catalog of the London International Fisheries Exhibition, including a description of the American exhibits that were on display, link to The Fisheries Exhibition Literature. Volume XII. Official catalogue. Awards of the International Juries . (London: William Clowes and Sons, 1884.)

  This Web entry was made possible in part by a generous grant from the National Association of Men’s Sportswear Buyers, in memory of Joseph S. Klein.

  Date made

  1878 - 1888

  maker

  unknown

  ID Number

  CS.310128.020

  catalog number

  310128.020

  accession number

  310128

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  French Horsehair Trunk

  Description

  This horsehair-covered trunk has a domed top, iron straps, loop handles, and two iron latches. The initials R and D are stenciled onto the ends, and the number 10 appears beneath the handles. The trunk was brought from France in 1881 by an unknown Dominican sister when she joined a group of four nuns from Oullins, France. They had established a strictly cloistered life at Newark, New Jersey, the previous year, having been invited to the United States by the archbishop of New York.

  Their religious observances included rising at midnight for Matins and Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament, as well as abstinence, fasting, sleeping on board beds, and enduring the cold. After two years, the community of Dominican sisters numbered fifteen. In April 1884, the group moved to a new home at the Monastery of Saint Dominic, in Newark, and within nine years, all 47 rooms in the new monastery were occupied.

  This trunk remained at the monastery until 1974, when it was purchased by the Smithsonian as an example of immigration, faith, and shared experiences in the United States. It was displayed in the Museum’s Bicentennial exhibition, A Nation of Nations, from 1976 to 1988.

  Date made

  1880

  ID Number

  CL.314563.02

  catalog number

  314563.02

  accession number

  314563

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Sewing Machine Sperm Oil

  Description

  Sperm whale oil is very light and fine, and it has a low freezing point. As a result, it was used to lubricate fine machinery such as clocks, watches, and sewing machines from colonial times into the 20th century.

  Date made

  1870-1880

  maker

  Donnell Company

  ID Number

  2007.0084.1

  catalog number

  2007.0084.1

  accession number

  2007.0084

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whale Harpoons, or Temple Toggle Irons

  Description

  While the African American blacksmith and former slave Lewis Temple did not invent the harpoon toggle, his invention made it better. The first barb at the tip of the toggle iron was designed to penetrate the whale’s flesh. The second barb also went straight in. A small wooden peg holding the lower barb in place would then break when the whale pulled away, allowing the barbed head to swivel away from the shaft. The new T-shape of the barb prevented the dart from pulling out of its wound.

  It was a harpooner’s responsibility to keep his tools sharp and well lubricated, to ensure that the toggle swiveled freely. Sometimes the men fashioned covers for the heads of their harpoons to keep them clean and dry until needed for use.

  One of these irons, or gigs, is shown in the closed position for entering the whale’s flesh; the other is toggled open to show how much harder it was to pull out.

  Date made

  1882

  inventor

  Temple, Lewis

  ID Number

  AG.056244

  catalog number

  056244

  accession number

  012284

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Cod hook (1)

  date made

  1883

  ID Number

  AG.057931

  catalog number

  057931

  accession number

  012629

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whaler's Harpoon with Toggle Head

  Description

  The first step in catching a whale was throwing at least two sharp harpoons into its back, to ensure that the whaleboat was securely fastened to its prey. Harpoon shafts were made of soft wrought iron, so that they would bend and not break off when twisted, which risked losing the wounded whale.

  A line at the bottom of the harpoon’s wooden handle attached it to the whaleboat. Once in the whale’s flesh, the sharp toggle tip swiveled sideways, making it harder for the tip of the weapon to pull out. Whales normally dove deep after the first prick, to try and escape the sharp jab from the surface of the ocean. This harpoon shaft was twisted by a descending whale.

  date made

  1882

  maker

  D. & D.

  ID Number

  AG.056237

  catalog number

  056237

  accession number

  012284

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whaler's Monkey Belt

  Description

  After a whale was captured and killed, its carcass was towed by the whaleboat to the side of the mother ship for processing. Cutting up the whale was done by crewmen standing on a wooden plank, or cutting stage, rigged out over the side of the ship so that they could stand directly over the body. Crewmen used this canvas “monkey belt” to secure themselves while they stripped the whale of its blubber. It was dangerous and slippery work. If a sailor slid into the water he risked drowning or being attacked by sharks looking for an easy meal.

  date made

  1883

  ID Number

  AG.057716

  catalog number

  057716

  accession number

  2009.0184

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whaler's Hand Lance

  Description

  After harpoons fastened the whale and whaleboat together, a whale was given plenty of time and rope to dive, try to swim away, and otherwise wear itself out. Once the exhausted animal returned to the surface to breathe, the whaleboat approached it, and a hand lance, also known as a killing iron, was used to actually dispatch the animal.

  Hand lances had long shafts, to allow the point to penetrate deep into the whale’s body in search of the thick neck arteries. The tips of the killing irons were leaf or oval shaped and extremely sharp, so that they cut on the way in and on the way out, and were easier to remove and stab repeatedly. Cutting the neck arteries prevented the animal from deep diving and hastened its bleeding to death.

  This nickel-plated example was manufactured and donated by Luther Cole of Fairhaven, Mass.

  Date made

  1880s

  maker

  Cole, Luther

  ID Number

  AG.056357

  accession number

  012326

  catalog number

  056357

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Whaler's Whalebone Scraper

  Description

  This odd tool was used to scrape the flesh off the bones from a freshly caught whale. It was the last step in processing the whale’s body before the bone was partially dried on deck and then stowed below in the cargo hold. Once the ship was back in port, the bone was placed on end in large yards to dry further.

  The bone and baleen—rows of bony strips in a whale’s upper jaw that filter food from seawater—from a whaling voyage could yield as much as $50,000, or even greater profits than the oil itself. Baleen served a wide variety of purposes from buggy whips to umbrella ribs to women’s corset stays.

  date made

  1880s

  ID Number

  AG.057778

  catalog number

  057778

  accession number

  012278

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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  Ship Model, Bugeye Lillie Sterling

  Description

  The bugeye was a type of sailing work boat unique to the Chesapeake Bay. Designed for oyster dredging, it was also used for hauling freight in the Bay’s shallow waters. This model, like the bugeye it represents, was built in 1885 by E. James Tull, a boatbuilder in Pocomoke City, Maryland. Tull displayed this model of the Lillie Sterling at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair as part of an exhibit organized by the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries. He won a medal for the vessel’s practical design.

  Bugeyes were first built after the Civil War, when the Maryland state legislature repealed an 1820 ban on oyster dredging. Dredges--heavy iron frames holding long mesh bags--were introduced in the bay by New Englanders seeking to replenish northern oyster beds with Chesapeake oysters. Maryland lawmakers banned dredging and restricted oyster harvesting to residents of the state. But as markets expanded in the 1860s, the ban was lifted to allow dredging in certain areas of the bay. Fearful that dredging would deplete the bay’s oysters, lawmakers sought to limit the dredge’s efficiency by restricting its use to sailing vessels. This law ensured that sailing craft, not steamers, would dominate the Chesapeake’s oyster industry. To this day, oyster dredging is still carried out by sail-powered boats in Maryland.

  The first bugeyes were large log canoes, built of seven or nine logs that were hollowed out, shaped, and pinned together lengthwise. They were built with full decks, which provided a working platform for the crew to empty the dredges and sort through the catch. By the 1880s, bugeyes like the Lillie Sterling were constructed with full framing and planking instead of logs. Although bugeyes were widely used in the oyster trade for several decades, they were gradually replaced by skipjacks, an easier and cheaper vessel to build. The origin of the name "bugeye" remains unknown.

  date made

  1885

  maker

  Tull, E. James

  ID Number

  TR.76256

  accession number

  28022

  catalog number

  76256

  Data Source

  National Museum of American History

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