Industry & Manufacturing
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.
9,083
Page 1 of 455
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Faceted, Diamond-Shaped Goldstone Button with Swirl Design
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.04010
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.04010
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Patent model for feeding apparatus for cylinder presses
- Description (Brief)
- This patent model demonstrates an invention for a feeding apparatus for cylinder presses. Maker, patent number, and date are unknown.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1870
- maker
- unknown
- ID Number
- 1997.0198.20
- catalog number
- 1997.0198.20
- accession number
- 1997.0198
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Pink Pearl Button
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.03347
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.03347
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Ornate Metal Slide Buckle
- Description
- This stamped yellowish metal buckle is formed into an oval shape composed of concentric rings attached by metal pieces.
- The Waterbury Collection tells the story of an important American manufacturer. As evidence of one company’s diverse output, the collection consists of several thousand metal objects and assemblies made in Waterbury, Connecticut, in the Naugatuck Valley from about 1890 to 1930. During the 19th Century, the Naugatuck Valley became a center of brass manufacturing, drawing heavily on the armory manufacturing practice of interchangeable parts.
- The Waterbury Button Company traces its beginning to the War of 1812, when Aaron Benedict began crafting uniform buttons. During the nineteenth century the company grew from a small village shop to a large national manufacturer. Its product line expanded to include machine produced brassware such as knobs, hinges, and buckles. The company also experimented with innovative materials such as celluloid in the 1870s and Bakelite in the 1920s. In the spirit of its founding, the company continued to supply uniform buttons and mobilized to meet wartime demands during major conflicts including the Civil War and World War I.
- This rich history of product innovation and machine assembly is captured in the more than 7,500 examples of military insignia, civilian emblems, belt plates, buckles, and machine components donated to the museum in 1975. Varying in size from a thumbtack to a soup can, the majority of these objects are composed of metal such as tin, nickel, brass, and other copper and iron alloys. They originally came to the museum mounted on cardboard display boards. At the National Museum of American History, the collection is divided between the Division of Work and Industry and the Division of Armed Forces History. Additional artifacts can be found at the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury, Connecticut.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Waterbury Button Company
- ID Number
- MC.314686.0627
- catalog number
- 314686.0627
- accession number
- 314686
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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Marcasite Button with Star Decoration in Center
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.04163
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.04163
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Garment Production Specification Papers
- Description
- These are cutting and sewing instructions for the overseas manufacturing of a dress sold under the “Hot Kiss” label. The instructions date from June 27, 2002 and describe a dress with style number 126-5462 made in Hong Kong. The paper gives explicit instructions about how to stitch the seams, where the ruffles should go, and how much cloth should be used for each size of dress. During the 1980s, more and more brands and labels operated factories abroad to manufacture their wares with cheaper labor. This made it necessary to create guidelines and instructions for the overseas workers such as this ticket.
- date made
- 1999 - 2002
- 1999-2002
- maker
- Hot Kiss, Inc.
- ID Number
- 2014.3041.04.01
- catalog number
- 2014.3041.04.01
- nonaccession number
- 2014.3041
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition Needle Lace Certificate
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1909
- Associated Date
- 1909
- ID Number
- 2003.0186.02
- accession number
- 2003.0186
- catalog number
- 2003.0186.02
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Button Made from Hard Rubber or Horn Depicting a Woman's Profile
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.03833
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.03833
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Black Glass Button with Floral Design
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.03547
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.03547
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Button Depicting a Woman in Profile
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.03628
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.03628
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Ornate Metal Slide Buckle
- Description
- This white metal buckle is stamped into an oval frame with a multifaceted gemstone design and one decorative prong.
- The Waterbury Collection tells the story of an important American manufacturer. As evidence of one company’s diverse output, the collection consists of several thousand metal objects and assemblies made in Waterbury, Connecticut, in the Naugatuck Valley from about 1890 to 1930. During the 19th Century, the Naugatuck Valley became a center of brass manufacturing, drawing heavily on the armory manufacturing practice of interchangeable parts.
- The Waterbury Button Company traces its beginning to the War of 1812, when Aaron Benedict began crafting uniform buttons. During the nineteenth century the company grew from a small village shop to a large national manufacturer. Its product line expanded to include machine produced brassware such as knobs, hinges, and buckles. The company also experimented with innovative materials such as celluloid in the 1870s and Bakelite in the 1920s. In the spirit of its founding, the company continued to supply uniform buttons and mobilized to meet wartime demands during major conflicts including the Civil War and World War I.
- This rich history of product innovation and machine assembly is captured in the more than 7,500 examples of military insignia, civilian emblems, belt plates, buckles, and machine components donated to the museum in 1975. Varying in size from a thumbtack to a soup can, the majority of these objects are composed of metal such as tin, nickel, brass, and other copper and iron alloys. They originally came to the museum mounted on cardboard display boards. At the National Museum of American History, the collection is divided between the Division of Work and Industry and the Division of Armed Forces History. Additional artifacts can be found at the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury, Connecticut.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Waterbury Button Company
- ID Number
- MC.314686.0788
- catalog number
- 314686.0788
- accession number
- 314686
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Faceted, Oblong-Shaped Goldstone Button
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.04007
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.04007
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Stevens Rocking Grate Bar, Patent Model
- Description
- This model was submitted to the U.S. Patent Office with the application for the patent issued to Francis B. Stevens, November 11, 1879, no. 221430.
- The model represents a grate surface formed of ordinary fish-bellied grate bars on each of the lower ends of which two journal bearings are formed to fit into and rest in two corresponding rounded socket bearings. The bar is made to rock in each of these bearings alternately to the right and left, so that the upper part of the grate overhangs the right-hand socket when rocked to the right, and the left-hand socket when rocked to the left. That the upper part of the grate bar will overhang the center on which it turns is the improvement claimed by the inventor.
- 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
- 1879
- patent date
- 1879-11-11
- inventor
- Stevens, Francis B.
- ID Number
- MC.309217
- catalog number
- 309217
- accession number
- 89797
- patent number
- 221,430
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Shaft Mounted Roller Bearing
- Description
- The Timken Roller Bearing Company of Canton, Ohio manufactured this shaft-mounted roller bearing around 1950. The bearing is on a five-inch spoked wheel on a 4-inch knurled shaft. Bearings are mounted on a drive shaft to help the transfer of power from engine to the machine. The Anti-Friction Bearing Manufacturers Association collected bearings for a public relations exhibit during the early 1950s, and donated them to the museum in 1977.
- Simple bearings have been used for thousands of years reducing friction on turning parts like the axles of carts. In the late 1800s and early 1900s advances in machining and production expanded bearing use in all types of machines greatly increasing their life and precision. Bearings reduce friction on turning surfaces and keep them running true. Bearings come in a variety of shapes and sizes (including ball, roller, tapered, and simple friction). Modern bearings are often set in an inner and outer ring (called a race) sometimes with cages (separators) spacing the bearings. Changes to the size, shape, alignment, race, and cage allow for bearings to be used in almost any industry—from industrial turbines and automobiles to household mixers and computer hard drives.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- MC.336110.01
- catalog number
- 336110.01
- accession number
- 1977.0585
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Red Glass Ball Button
- Location
- Currently not on view
- ID Number
- 1962.239460.01688
- accession number
- 239460
- catalog number
- 239460.01688
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Vienna porcelain cup and saucer
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- c. 1806
- ID Number
- CE.P-501ab
- catalog number
- P-501ab
- accession number
- 225282
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Minton porcelain pâte-sur-pâte vase
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- 1870-1904
- c.1888
- ID Number
- CE.P-996
- catalog number
- P-996
- accession number
- 225282
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Alaska Ocean Coveralls
- Description
- Fish processors, laboratory staff, inspectors, supervisors, and others who work in the factory aboard the Alaska Ocean wear royal blue coveralls like these when on duty. These polyester coveralls are worn over other clothing to maintain standards of hygiene in the factory. Some processors change their coveralls several times during their daily 12-hour shift, which can extend to kicker shifts of an additional three hours. Because clean coveralls are always in demand, the factory’s laundry crew keeps the industrial washers and dryers running continuously. The coveralls, with the words Alaska Ocean emblazoned across the back, zip up the front and are typically worn tucked into boots.
- date made
- 2006
- Associated Date
- 2007
- used
- McFarland, Thelma
- maker
- Fristads
- ID Number
- 2007.0178.20
- catalog number
- 2007.0178.20
- accession number
- 2007.0178
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Patent Model of a Typesetting Machine
- Description (Brief)
- This patent model demonstrates an invention for improvements to typesetting machines, specifically in the control of type traveling from storage channels to assembly point. The invention was granted patent number 244723. Both Patentees Lorenz and Johnson had a financial interest in the Burr typesetting machine (see Lorenz's earlier patents).
- Location
- Currently not on view
- date made
- ca 1881
- patent date
- 1881-07-19
- maker
- Lorenz, William A.
- Johnson, Louis K.
- ID Number
- GA.89797.244723
- patent number
- 244723
- accession number
- 089797
- catalog number
- GA*89797.244723
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
-
Ornate Metal Buckle Frame
- Description
- This metal buckle is stamped into an oval frame featuring a textured striped pattern.
- The Waterbury Collection tells the story of an important American manufacturer. As evidence of one company’s diverse output, the collection consists of several thousand metal objects and assemblies made in Waterbury, Connecticut, in the Naugatuck Valley from about 1890 to 1930. During the 19th Century, the Naugatuck Valley became a center of brass manufacturing, drawing heavily on the armory manufacturing practice of interchangeable parts.
- The Waterbury Button Company traces its beginning to the War of 1812, when Aaron Benedict began crafting uniform buttons. During the nineteenth century the company grew from a small village shop to a large national manufacturer. Its product line expanded to include machine produced brassware such as knobs, hinges, and buckles. The company also experimented with innovative materials such as celluloid in the 1870s and Bakelite in the 1920s. In the spirit of its founding, the company continued to supply uniform buttons and mobilized to meet wartime demands during major conflicts including the Civil War and World War I.
- This rich history of product innovation and machine assembly is captured in the more than 7,500 examples of military insignia, civilian emblems, belt plates, buckles, and machine components donated to the museum in 1975. Varying in size from a thumbtack to a soup can, the majority of these objects are composed of metal such as tin, nickel, brass, and other copper and iron alloys. They originally came to the museum mounted on cardboard display boards. At the National Museum of American History, the collection is divided between the Division of Work and Industry and the Division of Armed Forces History. Additional artifacts can be found at the Mattatuck Museum in Waterbury, Connecticut.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Waterbury Button Company
- ID Number
- MC.314686.0355
- catalog number
- 314686.0355
- accession number
- 314686
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History
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topic
- Industrialization 9083
- Manufacturing industries 9083
- Waterbury Button Company Collection 4864
- Clothing and dress 1332
- Dress accessories 1332
- Buttons 1263
- Scovill Manufacturing Collection 620
- Furnishings 439
- Art 425
- Communications 425
- Ecology 422
- Patent Models, Graphic Arts 394
- Mining Lamps 347
- Architecture 248
- Engineering 248
- Government 245
- Politics 245
- Social reformers 245
- Transportation 243
- Bearings 136
-
object type
- Hardware (components) 1976
- button 1533
- Models 562
- Patents 547
- buckle, slide 497
- hardware, decorative 399
- Tokens 362
- Fasteners 359
- mining lamp 317
- Buckles (strap accessories) 263
- medal, political 261
- buckle, one prong 155
- buckle frame 149
- bearing 134
- lamp, safety, mining 128
- Saucers (plates) 100
- Cups 94
- Pins (fasteners) 63
- lamp, oil, cap, mining 49
- patent model; press, printing 46
- date
- place
- culture
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set name
- Work and Industry: Manufacturing 4865
- Waterbury Button Company Collection 4864
- Work and Industry: Production and Manufacturing 2168
- Clothing & Accessories 1330
- Buttons 1263
- Work 1214
- Scovill Manufacturing Collection 620
- Domestic Furnishings 439
- Home and Community Life: Ceramics and Glass 431
- Communications 425
- Work and Industry: Graphic Arts 424
- Art 423
- Patent Models 423
- Natural Resources 422
- Work and Industry: Mechanical and Civil Engineering 416
- Work and Industry: Mining 403
- Patent Models, Graphic Arts 394
- Mining Lamps 347
- Engineering, Building, and Architecture 247
