RevolutionCrossroads/si_us_revolutionary_era_collections huggingface dataset:
Paxton Cigarette Box
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Cigarette Box
designer: Landor Associates
Landor, Walter
Physical Description: paper; plastic (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 8.3 cm x 5.1 cm x 2.2 cm; 3 1/4 in x 2 in x 7/8 in
Credit line: Bequest of Walter and Josephine Landor
Description: In 1939, Walter Landor arrived in the United States to help install the British training pavilion at the New York World’s Fair. At twenty-six years old, Landor had left his home in Germany to study art and design in Britain, where he became the youngest Fellow of the Royal Society of Industrial Artists. With whispers of war circulating around Europe, Landor decided to stay in the United States and travelled to the West Coast in search of design work. In 1941, Landor and his new wife Josephine Martinelli founded Walter Landor and Associates (today Landor) in their San Francisco apartment. The company specialized in packaging and label design for a number of iconic brands ranging from Marlboro cigarettes to Aunt Jemima to Sara Lee. As the company expanded, Landor’s base of operations moved from his home through several locations until it settled in 1962 on the Klamath, a docked ferryboat in the San Francisco Bay that would become an iconic part of Landor’s own brand.
Philip Morris, now Altria Inc., wanted a new package for Paxton-brand cigarettes. In 1964, Philip Morris released its new humiflex packaging, which used plastic boxes to keep cigarettes fresher. American companies did not use plastic packaging for cigarettes on a large scale, but European companies had made some inroads in plastics. Philip Morris hired DeBell & Richardson to formulate and create the plastic packaging and hired Landor for the packaging design. Landor decided to focus on the Philip Morris crest for the body. Because the cigarettes were menthols, Landor used green for the top and bottom of the package. Philip Morris kept the entire process secret from start to finish with no public testing used for either the plastics or the design, and destroyed any unused samples of the plastic. Philip Morris intended for the entire design to be revolutionary in terms of both style and materials.
Charleville French Model 1774/1763 Flintlock Musket
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Musket
musket, flintlock
Date made: c. 1776
maker: Charleville
place made: France
Measurements: overall: 7 1/2 in x 59 1/2 in x 2 1/2 in; 19.05 cm x 151.13 cm x 6.35 cm
overall: 60 1/4 in x 3 1/8 in; 153.035 cm x 7.9375 cm
Model 1795 Socket Bayonet
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Bayonet
bayonet, socket
Date made: ca. 1797
Measurements: overall: 3 in x 17 1/2 in x 1 1/8 in; 7.62 cm x 44.45 cm x 2.8575 cm
overall: 1 1/8 in x 3 3/8 in x 17 5/8 in; 2.8575 cm x 8.5725 cm x 44.7675 cm
US Model 1795 Socket Bayonet
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Bayonet
bayonet, socket
Date made: ca. 1797
Measurements: overall: 1 1/4 in x 3 in x 19 1/2 in; 3.175 cm x 7.62 cm x 49.53 cm
P 1763 Socket Bayonet
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Bayonet
bayonet, socket
Date made: ca. 1775
Measurements: overall: 1 3/8 in x 2 3/8 in x 21 3/8 in; 3.4925 cm x 6.0325 cm x 54.2925 cm
Model 1795 Socket Bayonet
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Bayonet
bayonet, socket
Date made: ca. 1799
place made: United States
Measurements: overall: 1 1/8 in x 2 1/2 in x 19 1/4 in; 2.8575 cm x 6.35 cm x 48.895 cm
Hessian Sword
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Sword
Associated Place: Germany
Measurements: overall: 3 1/2 in x 34 1/2 in x 5 in; 8.89 cm x 87.63 cm x 12.7 cm
Topics: Revolution and the New Nation
Military
Description: Physical Description
German Inftantry sword, forged steel with bronze hilt.
16-Pound Bar Shot
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Shot
Bar Shot
Date made: circa 1775
date made: ca 1775
used in: United States
Measurements: overall: 5 in x 16 in x 5 in; 12.7 cm x 40.64 cm x 12.7 cm
overall:;
Topics: Revolution and the New Nation
American Revolution (1775-1783)
Military
Description: Physical Description
Forged steel.
General History
The shape of the bar shot, a center bar with rounded half-circles at either end, made it very effective against a rigged ship. The design allowed the weapon to carry away the yards, masts, and riggings of a ship.
Coursing
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Aquatint
Date made: 1801
original artist: Howitt, Samuel
graphic artist: Godby, James
Merke, Henri
publisher: Orme, Edward
"Stars and Tables" Overshot Coverlet, 1784
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: coverlet, overshot
coverlets
date made: 1784
maker: unknown
Physical Description: overshot (overall production method/technique)
cotton, linen, wool (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 76 in x 66 1/2 in; 193.04 cm x 168.91 cm
Topics: Furnishings
Textiles
Description: The weaver and original owner of this very complex, well worn, single-woven, linen, cotton and wool, overshot coverlet, dated 1784, are unknown. The letters “E M” and the date are woven into the coverlet on the lower right hand side, using a hand technique. We do not know if
“E M” stands for name of the owner or the weaver. In the 18th century it was not unusual for textiles to be marked with the initials of the owner, but it was usually done with embroidery. The initials identified the coverlet as the woman's property. Women could own and inherit "moveable" property.
The overall patterns used in this coverlet are “Rose” and “Tables,” and there are two shades of indigo blue used in a band effect. The coverlet was woven in two sections, and then sewn together. The original size of the sections and the coverlet as a whole are unknown, as there are no original edges present. This coverlet was found in Massachusetts. In the18th century, a young woman might commission the weaving of a coverlet or receive one as a gift, and put it in her dowry (hope chest) saving it for use after marriage.
Overshot coverlet; New York; 1787
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: coverlet, overshot
date made: 1787
maker: unknown
place made: United States: New York, Albany
Physical Description: indigo, white (overall color)
overshot (overall production method/technique)
cotton, linen, wool (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 89 in x 64 in; 226.06 cm x 162.56 cm
Topics: Furnishings
Textiles
Description: This blue and white, overshot coverlet is woven in a simple patch pattern variation. The customer’s initials, "M S" and the date “1787” are woven into the fabric at one corner. The weaver of this coverlet is unknown; however, there are several others known. There are two others in the NMAH collection. It is thought that the weaver worked in the Albany, New York area. The earliest coverlet that is dated in the weave was woven by this weaver. It is dated 1771 and is currently in the collection of the National Museum of the American Coverlet in Bedford, Pennsylvania. The coverlet was constructed from two panels and measures 89 inches by 64 inches.
Inventing the Cross
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Inventing the cross
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Pope John X
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1581
1773
graphic artist: Cavalleriis, Giovanni Battista
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Topics: Early American History
Pope John X
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1581
1773
Topics: Early American History
Wedding of Psyche
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
1545
publisher: Salamanca, Antonio
Losi, Carlo
original artist: Raphael
Topics: Early American History
Stoning of St. Stephen
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1575
1773
original artist: Rosso Fiorentino
publisher: Losi, Carlo
graphic artist: Alberti, Cherubino
Topics: Early American History
The Continence of Scipio
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Salamanca, Antonio
"Catalpa Flower;" coverlet,; overshot; c.1790-1820; South Carolina
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: coverlet, overshot
date made: first half of the 19th century
c. 1800-1850
c. 1790-1820
maker: unknown
place made: United States: South Carolina, Darlington
Physical Description: overshot (overall production method/technique)
cotton, wool (overall material)
brown, white (overall color)
Catalpa Flower (overall pattern)
Measurements: overall: 90 in x 65 in; 228.6 cm x 165.1 cm
Credit line: Gift of Mary Field, in memory of the Field Family
Topics: Furnishings
Textiles
Description: This "Catalpa Flower" pattern, overshot coverlet was made from brown 2-ply, S-Twist, Z-spun wool and cotton between the years 1790-1820 in Darlington County, SC. This overshot coverlet was a gift of the Field family and came with detailed genealogies linking the coverlet to the family of Col. Lemuel Benton (1754-1818). The Benton family home, Stony Hill, now demolished, was just outside of Mechanicsville, Darlington County, South Carolina. It was likely made on the family's farm, possibly by enslaved spinners and weavers.
Colonel Lemuel Benton (1754-1818) was born in Granville County, North Carolina. As a young man he moved to Darlington County, South Carolina. He became an eminent landowner and planter in what was then known as the Cheraw District. Benton was elected major of the Cheraw Regiment in 1777. . He was promoted to the rank of colonel in 1781 and resigned his commission in 1794. After the Revolutionary War, Col. Benton severed in the South Carolina State House of Representatives from 1782-1788. Benton also served as a county court justice, county treasurer, sheriff, and as a delegate to the state’s convention to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1788 and 1790. Colonel Benton also served three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. Benton retired to his estate, Stony Hill in Darlington County where he died in 1818.
Colonel Benton appears to have been married twice. He and his first wife, who has yet to be identified, had a daughter, Charlotte Benton Prince (1783-1870). Col. Benton marries Elizabeth “Betsy” Kimbrough (b. 1776) sometime before the birth of their child, Gilly Hinton Benton Dubose (1789-1852). It is possible that his wives or daughters wove this coverlet. It is also just as likely that some of the ninety-five enslaved people recorded in the 1810 Federal Census were working in a loom house weaving coverlets, blankets, and cloth for the other enslaved people working on Benton’s land.
Alexander and Thalestris
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
graphic artist: Fagiuoli, Girolamo
Primaticcio, Francesco
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Battle of the Cutlass
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
graphic artist: Veneziano, Agostino
original artist: Giulio Romano
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Battle Scene
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1774
original artist: Tempesta, Antonio
graphic artist: Cungi, Camillo
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Conversion of Saint Paul
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Sacrifice of a Bull before a Statue of Jupiter
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
graphic artist: Scultori, Diana
original artist: Giulio Romano
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Moses and the tablets
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Print
Date made: 1773
original artist: Raphael
graphic artist: Cavalieri, Giovanni Battista
publisher: Losi, Carlo
Lafrery, Antoine
inkstand
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Inkstand
Date made: 18th century
Physical Description: ceramic (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 7 1/2 in x 19 in x 9 in; 19.05 cm x 48.26 cm x 22.86 cm
Credit line: Gift of American Pharmaceutical Association and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company
Topics: Art
Pharmacy
1810 J.W.'s Medallion Quilt
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: quilt, wholecloth
date made: 1810
maker: unknown
Physical Description: fabric, cotton (overall material)
thread, cotton (overall material)
filling, cotton (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 94 in x 91 in; 239 cm x 230 cm
Credit line: J. Marc Hehn, John M. Hehn, Jr. and Christopher S. Hehn
Topics: Quilts
Furnishings
Textiles
Description: The oval medallion that graces the center of this whole-cloth whitework quilt contains the embroidered initials “J W” and the date “1810.” A stuffed-work wreath of flowers encircles the medallion. This is in turn framed by borders of stuffed-work foliage and double cross-hatched quilting. This early example of white work was kept in the family until its donation to the National Museum of American History in 2000. The identity of the maker or “J W” is not known.
Oil Painting, Collins Line Steamship SS <I>Atlantic</I>
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: painting, oil
date made: 1800s
US Congress awarded an annual transatlantic mail contract to Collins: 1847
Collins Line service started: 1850
Collins Line service ended: 1858
Atlantic acquired by the government for Civil War service: 1858
Atlantic scrapped: 1871
Collins steamship line: New York and Liverpool United States Mail Steamship Company
ship owner: Collins, Edward Knight
ship owner and Knight's competitor: Cunard, Samuel
built SS <I>Atlantic</I>: Dramatic Line of Atlantic Sailing Packets
maker: Louis Honore Frederick Gamain
ship sailed: United States: New York, New York
United Kingdom: England, Liverpool
Physical Description: oil paint (paint material)
wood (frame material)
Measurements: overall: 26 3/4 in x 37 1/4 in x 2 1/4 in; 67.945 cm x 94.615 cm x 5.715 cm
Publisher: National Museum of American History. On the Water exhibition website, http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthewater
Topics: Civil War, 1861-1865
Transportation
American Civil War (1861-1865)
On the Water exhibit
Description: In 1840, Canadian Samuel Cunard inaugurated regular transatlantic steamship service from Liverpool, England to North America. Within a few years, he had two competitors, one of whom was American Edward Knight Collins (1802-1878), owner of the Dramatic Line of Atlantic sailing packets.
Collins had been lobbying the U.S. government for nearly a decade for the subsidy of an American overseas steamship mail service, and in 1847 Congress authorized an annual transatlantic mail contract for $385,000. Won by Collins, the contract called for five steamships and bimonthly mail service from New York to Liverpool.
Collins founded the New York and Liverpool United States Mail Steamship Company (known as the Collins Line) and commissioned the four sister steamships <I>Atlantic, Pacific, Arctic</I> and <I>Baltic</I>. When service started in 1850, the Collins ships were the fastest, largest, and most magnificently appointed steamships in the world, with stained glass skylights, steam heat in the public rooms and 3,500-bottle wine cellars.
This painting shows the arrival of the Collins liner <I>Atlantic</I> in May 1850 after her maiden voyage from New York to Liverpool. Measuring 282 feet long and 2,856 tons, the <I>Atlantic</I> set a speed record on this passage, while consuming 87 tons of coal per day. Although the Collins line ceased operations in February 1858, the <I>Atlantic</I> was acquired by the U.S. Government for Civil War service. After the war it was operated by other owners until scrapped in 1871.
Ship Model of the <i>Le Vengeur</i>
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: ship model
date made: ca 1806
maker: unknown
Physical Description: wood (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 21 in x 27 in x 8 1/2 in; 53.34 cm x 68.58 cm x 21.59 cm
Credit line: Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection
Topics: Transportation
Ocean
Description: This model of the French flagship, <i>Le Vengeur</i> was made by a French prisoner of war around 1806, during the Napoleonic Wars. In captivity, the prisoners in Britain made and sold ship models to pass the time and earn meager monetary rewards. Such models were made from wood or bone and ivory, and are often intricately detailed.
This rigged model of the French 130-gun, three-masted ship-of-the-line <i>Le Vengeur</i> has copper plating below the water line, highly detailed lines, rigging and fittings, a carved hull with triple galleried stern, and carved and inlaid bow with a female figurehead. Three rows of gunports below contain cannons, along with cannon mounted on the deck. The model has an elaborately inlaid geometric patterned base and the hull is all original with full plank-on-frame construction. Standing rigging is said to be original, though the top is mostly replaced.
Built in 1790, <i>Le Vengeur</i> was the flagship of French Vice Admiral Ganteaume. It was renamed <i>Imperial</i> around 1800. In 1805 it became Ganteaume's flagship in Brest, and broke through Lord Earl Cornwallis' blockade during the Napoleonic Wars, with seven other ships-of-the-line and sailed for the West Indies. She was sunk by the British off Santo Domingo in 1806.
Painting, <i>Harriet</i>
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: engraving
date made: ca 1793
artist: Groenewegen, Gerrit
Physical Description: paper (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 8 in x 12 1/2 in; 20.32 cm x 31.75 cm
Credit line: Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection
Topics: Transportation
Ocean
Description: This 1793 print attributed to Gerrit Groenewegen shows three small brigs in port. The brig in the foreground is identified by “HARRIET of Georgetown” written on its stern. It is flying an American flag. The flag has 13 stars, which dates it to between 1777 and 1795. The two ships on either side are both flying tri-color horizontally striped blue-white-red flags. The blue-white-red flag is used by the small European country of Schleswig-Holstein, which at times has belonged to both Denmark and Germany. Perhaps the artist meant to paint the flag of the Netherlands and reversed the blue and red stripes accidentally. The buildings rising from the shore in the background and the European clothing of the individuals indicate that the ships most likely lie in port of a European harbor, perhaps Dutch. Gerrit Groenewegen (1754-1826) was a Dutch artist originally taught to be a shipbuilder until an accident at the shipyard caused the loss of one of his legs. After the accident he studied under Nicholaes Muys to become an artist, and began his career as a maritime painter. He is best known for his serial of 84 engravings depicting Dutch vessels in port at Rotterdam. Some of the features of this print do not match other attributes of this artist, calling the date and attribution into question.
Ship Model of H.M.S. <i>Caesar 4th</i>
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: ship model
date made: 1805
maker: unknown
Physical Description: bone (overall material)
ivory (overall material)
Measurements: overall: 22 in x 30 1/4 in x 12 1/4 in; 55.88 cm x 76.835 cm x 31.115 cm
Credit line: Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection
Topics: Transportation
Ocean
Description: This rigged model was made in the early 19th century of ivory, bone and whale baleen by a French Napoleonic seaman imprisoned in England. The hull is built of planks fastened by rivets and bears brass cannon, which are fitted with a device enabling them to be run in and out. This mechanism is indicative of earlier models made during the Napoleonic Wars.
<i>HMS Caesar 4th</i> was launched in 1793 and measured 181 feet in length and 1,991 tons. Though originally ordered as a 74-gun boat, <i>Caesar</i> carried 80 guns. The ship participated in several naval battles during the Napoleonic Wars, including Lord Howe’s victory over the French on June 1, 1794, the first naval engagement of the French Revolution, or the Glorious First Day of June. <i>Caesar</i> captain Anthony James faced court martial after the battle, accused of not doing his best to pass through the enemy line on May 29 and failing to take up his proper station on June 1. He was dismissed. In 1803 <i>Caesar</i> underwent repairs in Plymouth, and continued to fight through 1809. After 1814, it was used in an Army depot at Plymouth and was broken up in 1821 after a long and illustrious career.
Unidentified Virgen
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Santo
Latino, Puerto Rican, Religious
Date made: 18th Century
place made: Puerto Rico
Measurements: overall: 31.5 cm x 15.5 cm x 9.7 cm; 12 3/8 in x 6 1/8 in x 3 13/16 in
Topics: Religion
San Antonio de Padua
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: Santo
Latino, Puerto Rican, Religious
Date made: 18th Century
maker: Espada, Felipe de la
Measurements: overall: 30.2 cm x 13.5 cm x 13.1 cm; 11 7/8 in x 5 5/16 in x 5 3/16 in
Topics: Religion
Allegheny Parade Hat
Collection: National Museum of American History
Object type: hat, fire
in use: 1802-1870
company which the hat's owner belonged to: Allegheny Engine Co.
owner: Neel, Harry
maker: unknown
place made: United States
location of fire company: United States: Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh
Physical Description: fabric, pressed felt (overall material)
star (top motif)
red (overall color)
black (underbrim color)
paint (overall material)
gold (lettering and decoration color)
painted (overall production method/technique)
Measurements: overall: 5 3/4 in x 13 1/8 in x 14 1/4 in; 14.605 cm x 33.3375 cm x 36.195 cm
Credit line: Gift of CIGNA Museum and Art Collection
Publisher: McCosker, M.J.. The Historical Collection of the Insurance Company of North America
Topics: Art
Fire Hats
Clothing and dress
Dress accessories
Firefighting Collection
Fraternal Associations
Fire Fighting
Description: Beginning in the late 18th century, some volunteer fire fighters began to wear hats painted with their company’s name to identify themselves at chaotic fire scenes. During the 19th century, these fire hats became more ornate, as portraits of historical figures, patriotic scenes, allegorical images, or company icons were painted alongside the company’s name, motto, or founding date. Made of pressed felt, these “stove-pipe” hats were primarily used in Philadelphia, but other nearby cities such as Baltimore and Washington adopted them as well. Fire hats were personal items with the owner’s initials often painted on the top of the hat. While these hats were worn at fires, they are more colloquially known as “parade hats.” Fire companies commonly marched in the many parades of the period and these ornate hats contributed to the visual culture of their day. These distinguishing features in a company’s regalia often proclaimed the members’ cultural and political identity as well as their position on contested topics such as work, religion and immigration.
This hat dates to the first half of the 19th century from Allegheny, Pennsylvania. The hat has been painted red, and bears the text “ALLEGHENY” in gold above a United States shield. The date “1802” is painted in gold on the back of the hat, and the crown of the hat has a star shaped designed with the letter “A” in the center. The Allegheny Fire Company of Allegheny, Pennsylvania was founded in 1802 and operated until 1870, when it was absorbed by the municipal fire department.