R. Bliss Co Boy's Union Tool Chest No. 90 B
date: label: date made
content: c. 1915
name: label: maker
content: R. Bliss and Co.
notes: label: Description
content: As illustrated in this child's tool chest from around 1915, children in the early 20th century encountered their society's gender expectations at a young age. The tool chest from R. Bliss & Co. assumed carpentry to be boys' work as another model of this toy declares. The tool chest came with a hinged lid and a sliding, removable top tray. The wooden box has dovetail corners and a hook closure. This tool chest appears to have been a Christmas gift and has an inscription in pencil on its underside. These sets included smaller versions of the adult tools used by fathers and were used in some schools at a time when industrial training was encouraged. Sets varied but could include rulers, saws, levels, augers, a miter box, hammers, and a hatchet.
label: Description
content: Inside the lid in the center is a colorful patriotic lithographed paper label depicting an eagle with its wings spread, standing on a US shield. Behind the eagle is a yellow and blue striped banner and above it are stars in a display typical of the period of Americanization and of World War I. The American flag (on the right) and the British Union Jack hang directly behind the eagle in front of the French flag and another flag that has a royal blue strip above a little white. The rest of that flag is obscured. The initials NNC (lithographer?) are centered in blue above the eagle. The model number of No. 90 B as indicated in the upper right section of the label. Other models have different images but the patriotic imagery is also found on models No. 6 and 45B. To the left of the central image is a picture of two young boys working back to back on carpentry projects and to the right of the eagle image is a young boy with a toy horse and an older boy holding a hammer. The left top corner depicts a saw, hammer, and compass.
label: Description
content: R. Bliss & Co., established in 1845 as a tool company by Rufus Bliss, making wooden screws and clamps for piano and cabinetmakers. By 1871 it is mentioned in the New England Business Directory as a toy manufacturer. It became a leading manufacturer of toys by the turn of the 20th century, producing quality toys such as wooden ships and many toys such as blocks have colorful artwork as seen on the inside lid of this tool chest. The tool chest was supposedly added to the toy line in the 1911 however and 1889 company catalog contains six pages of tool chests listed for “boys, for gentlemen, and a household line”. The company sold their toy division, to Manson and Parker of Winchendon, Massachusetts in 1914 but the Bliss name continued to be used on a few toys until 1935.
place: label: place made
content: United States: Rhode Island, Providence
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Education
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Dr. Richard Lodish American School Collection
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 2017.3049.07
label: nonaccession number
content: 2017.3049
label: catalog number
content: 2017.3049.07
objectType: label: Object Name
content: chest, tool
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: paper (label material)
label: Physical Description
content: lithographed (label production method/technique)
label: Physical Description
content: metal (tools material)
label: Physical Description
content: wood (tools material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 13 cm x 35 cm x 17 cm; 5 1/8 in x 13 25/32 in x 6 11/16 in