Mennonite apron of bleached, plain-weave cotton and black two-ply silk embroidery. Apron is gathered at the top and sewn onto a waist band with a commercial tape string at each end.
At top center is a dark brown cross-stitched design of a central star flower on triangle base, surrounded by seven stars or crosses. The separated initials "M S" flank this design and large crosses flank initials. Three different embroidered borders of black silk combine with drawnwork at bottom above a one-inch self-fringe secured with black stitches.
Provenance
Purchased by donor from the Rev. Fred Weiser in 1997. Weiser notes there are about 15 aprons known; see article in Der Regebogge written "some years ago."
Staining around embroidered design and initials from bleeding embroidery, near top. Age discoloration with small stains overall. Stains along sides. Several thread "pulls". Areas of missing embroidery on three crosses at bottom. Small hole at lower right of design.
Conserved Nov. 1997 by Dorothy McCoach of Bethlehem, PA
Object ID
G.97.39.9
Place of Origin
Lancaster County
Credit
Gift of Hampton Randolph, Sr., Heritage Center Collection
Cast iron ashtray in rectangular form, sloping sides, sunken top with raised sides having a textured surface with two corner indentations for cigarettes. Opposite end of indentation is a grouping of four geese, fully formed, attached to top surface with screws. Entire surface is bronzed with a pattern of oblique stripes on sides.
Marked "144" on bottom. The Hubley catalog "Metal Art Goods" lists this ashtray as #144 and named "Goosie Goosie Gander." The description notes it has "an unusual bronze finish".
Provenance
Owned by J. Roland Gilbert (1888-1940) and inherited by his daughter the donor (1916-1992). Donor writes: "acquired in the late '20s or early '30s and 'possibly' a gift from Mr. Joseph Breneman, a Hubley Exec." J. Roland Gilbert was president of Lancaster Press Inc. and general manager of the New Era Publishing Co.
Quaker bonnet owned and worn by Mercy Moore Carter Wood. Black silk shell on both brim and back. Back is lined with loose-weave linen scrim, pleated, and back is gathered on the top where attached to the brim. Linen tape and lining connect brim to back inside. 5"-deep brim lined in white silk.
On bonnet back at bottom is a black silk ruffled skirting trimmed above with a prominent bow. Wide black silk ties attached to base of brim, approx. 23" long, have unfinished, fraying ends.
Mercy Moore Carter Wood (b. Nov. 29, 1822 and d. Sept. 14, 1911) married James Wood in 1845, lived on a farm in Little Britain Twp. near Kirk Mills and raised 8 children. James Wood was a farmer and bank director. The Woods were members of the Eastland Friends Meeting, located in Little Britain Twp. between Wrightsdale and Kirks Mills.
Photo of Mercy Wood in file, with inscription on reverse side of frame (now discarded) is: "Mercy Moore Carter Wood/ Taken on her 80th/ Birthday 1902/ on the Wood farm at family reunion." Photo is mounted on board imprinted "C.W. Thomas/ Electric Block/ Oxford, PA."
See also G09.2.2 -- cap belonging to same owner.
Provenance
Descended in family to donor who is the great granddaughter of Mercy Wood.
Brown mildewed spotting on brim lining. Overall darkening of linen lining, especially at neck. Outer shell of bonnet has sprinkling of light mildew spots.
Object ID
G.09.02.1
Place of Origin
Little Britain Twp.
Credit
Heritage Center Collection, gift of Ruth C. Wodock
Miniature toleware tin box with hinged, domed lid fitted with a hasp at front and a pull ring at top. Red painted ground. Red striping separates upper and lower panels on front: above is a yellow ground with a stylized foliate design of red and green; below are yellow banana-like crescents which continue on box ends.
Strong paint losses overall, cracking and flaking. The left rear hinge is detached, despite the attempt to resolder it. Solder joint at right rear corner of lid is broken and joint separated.
Object ID
G.98.14.3
Place of Origin
Probably Southeastern PA
Credit
Gift of Drs. Irwina and M. Susan Richman, Heritage Center Collection
Tole painted tin box with hinged, domed lid fitted with a hasp at front and a large ring pull at top. Red painted ground overall except underside. Front painted with a stylized design of yellow and black leaves with a pink and white flower at each end. Ends have a "twisted rope" decoration in an X configuration. Lid top has similar twisted design of black and yellow bordering a central foliate design of yellow and black.
Interior solder repairs on hinges and pull ring. Extensive points of paint loss due to chips, scratches and other abrasions. Lid is especially weathered with oxidized paint. Inside strongly oxidized at bottom and sides.
Object ID
G.98.12.5
Place of Origin
Southeastern Pennsylvania
Credit
Gift of Mrs. S.R. Slaymaker II, Heritage Center Collection
Low rectangular softwood box with top and bottom boards extending beyond sides. Constructed with glued butt joints and square head nails. Painted black with large tulips of yellow, red, white and green decorated top and sides. Hinged lid attached with wire hinges and secured at front with handmade tin hasp. The initials "I R" are painted at upper center of lid. The unpainted bottom is inscribed in pencil, "Jacob H. Reist 1800." Interior unfinished.
Border of Lancaster and Berks counties.
Paper inside: "This box attributed to Heinrich Bucher 1770-1800/Reading, Berks Co."
Provenance
Unknown. Presumed to have been collected by donor at a sale in this region. Heinrich Bucher is now believed to have only been an early owner of this box type, not the maker.
Nov. 15, 2002 - Peter Seibert and Susan Kleckner compared about ten Bucher-type boxes & observed that this box is painted with larger flowers and also there is repetition in the use of flowers, unlike the other nine boxes. Perhaps this box was done later in the maker's career.
Roughly fashioned polychromed softwood miniature trinket box of rectangular form. Domed lid hollowed out underneath and ends fitted with conforming caps. Wire hinges and wire loop at front with missing tin hasp. Corresponding wire loop for hasp on box front. Box sides constructed of rabbet joints secured by two wood pegs at front and two at back. Beveled bottom board attached with two pegs and extends beyond box sides. Top and four sides each have a floral motif of dark green, cream, ochre and red all on a tan ground. Glossy varnish overall except for bottom and interior. Indecipherable initials painted on bottom.
Probably Lancaster County
Provenance
Purchased by donor at Lancaster County sale. At least four other examples known. See example in collection #1973.003.2
Possible maker is Peter Brubacher (1816-1898), shoemaker and woodworker in Clay Township.
Trinket box of softwood constuction covered by German newsprint outside and a coarse blue-green paper inside. Glued over the newsprint are strips of straw of various tones arranged in geometrical designs on domed lid and sides in a technique very similar to marquetry. Newsprint visible on underside as well as where straw pieces are missing. Lid has hinge of coarse linen under laminate. Bent wire hook on lid fits into wire loop on box front.
Provenance
Collected by donor in Lancaster Co. According authority Clarke Hess, these boxes are plentiful, but not usually with newspaper lining. Clarke owns two of these boxes, both with Lancaster German language newsprint, and believes these boxes were made 1820-1840 in PA.
John Tannehill, expert in iron, reports someone told him these boxes were made in prisons.
Brass buckle of the sword belt used with the Civil War uniform of Jacob Pontz (1838-1929). Rectangular buckle is cast in high relief with a raised spread eagle with E PLURIBUS UNUM banner in his beak and an olive branch in one talons and arrows of war in the other. Foliate branches undergird eagle with a "U" formation. One brass clasp/clip of belt is loose - a part that would have fit end of now-missing belt and attached via clip on back of buckle.
See Pontz Sword #2015.031.1
Provenance
Passed from Jacob through his daughter Nelle who married a Pickering to the donor, the gr gr granddaughter of the Jacob Pontz.
One of a pair of matching metal buckles, rectangular with points clipped off at corners. Two swivel pieces, one a prong, attached to center of rectangular opening. Entire buckle is curved, rather than flat. Matching buckle is G.96.21.17.
From archeological collection, 135 W. King St., Lancaster, PA.
Woman's cap of black silk, worn by Quakeress Mercy M.C. Wood. Well-made, likely by a millinery shop that specialized in such headwear; at least some stitching seems to be hand-done. Cap was perhaps worn under bonnet (G09.2.1)
Viewed from side (collapsed), the cap front is about 6" deep (front to back) at the top. The back section is about 3.5" deep and is gathered at bottom with a draw string of 1/4"-wide black ribbon. Cap ties attached at front bottom corners are 12" long and 3" wide, but reduced by pleating. Ends have a 1"-wide hem. Stitching done in brown thread.
Mercy Moore Carter Wood (b. Nov. 29, 1822 and d. Sept. 14, 1911) married James Wood in 1845, lived on a farm in Little Britain Twp. near Kirk Mills and raised 8 children. James Wood was a farmer and bank director. The Woods were members of the Eastland Friends Meeting, located in Little Britain Twp. between Wrightsdale and Kirks Mills.
See G09.2.1 for bonnet of same owner.
Provenance
Descended in family to donor who is the great granddaughter of Mercy Wood.
See file of bonnet for: short bio on Mercy Moore Carter Wood, history of Eastland Friends Meeting, family tree, history of Little Britain Township, and "A History of the Little Britain Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, 1804-1954" by Helen Wood Shortlidge.
Credit
Heritage Center Collection, gift of Ruth C. Wodock
WW II Army hat of Elmer Kenneth Rill (27 August 1919 - 19 October 2006). Called a garrison cap, it has rectangular shape of khaki wool twill and is trimmed with blue-green piping.
Provenance
Donor inherited from father, Elmer Rill, who, he states, never saw active combat; he was slated to be sent off to Japan, but the 2 bombs caused a quick end to war. His obituary states he "served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater as a Rifleman."
WW II Army Hat of Elmer Kenneth Rill (27 August 1919 - 19 October 2006). Called a garrison cap, it has rectangular shape of khaki wool and is trimmed with blue piping. Reinforced with a 5/8" wide additional band of khaki wool along bottom edge of interior.
Provenance
Donor inherited from father, Elmer Rill, who, he states, never saw active combat; he was slated to be sent off to Japan, but the 2 bombs caused a quick end to war. His obituary states he "served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater as a Rifleman."
Photo of Elmer Rill is in the Photograph Collection.
Civil War coatee, perhaps for Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment 1, Company K, known as the Jackson Rifles. Appears to be a dress/parade uniform.
Navy blue & white wool coatee with standing collar. 3 columns of buttons on the front and on two 15-inch tails. Metallic-thread embellishments on sleeves and tails. Front of garment tapers to a slight point at the center front, ending at the waist. Back with tails is longer. This is a finely constructed and tailored garment made of quality materials.
Buttons: Bronze-colored metal buttons with "Jackson Rifles" circling a center "JR" monogram. On reverse of button is a metal loop/shank and "Pettibone Mfg. Co., Cincinnati." 26 buttons on front of garment (one is missing) in three columns of 9; and 2 at waist level on back of garment. All have a diameter .875 inch). Three .25-inch buttons along side seams on each sleeve.
Back of garment: White wool along outer & inner edges of both 15-inch long tails. A hook & eye sewn where tails meet in center to align and hold tails together. Both decorated with branches with 13 star-like leaves sewn in metallic threads.
Sleeves: Both underarm and sides seams. (A torn seam opening reveals padding beneath sewn button shanks to anchor them.) Three .25-inch buttons sewn 2, 3.5 & 5 inches from cuff along underarm seam. Sleeves lined with tan silk-like fabric with woven plant designs.
Inside body of coatee: "31" in black inked onto batting at back neck. Remaining threads beneath indicate that a sewn-in tag was removed. A fabric loop for hanging the garment is sewn onto the collar. Garment is lined with grid-stitched batting. 6-inch slash pockets on left front and one on each tail.
