Fruit Picking Pail - Object of the Week

John S. Barnett of Central Point, OR patented this fruit pail design in December 1910 [1]. A 1916 advertisement for the "Barnett Fruit Picking Pail" claimed "No Bruised Fruit if you use the Famous Barnett Pan," due to its canvas-lined bottom inside the galvanized iron pail [2]. Northwest Fence and Iron Works of Portland, OR sold them for $1.50 each [3]. How does this compare with fruit picking systems today?

Fruit Picking Pail, c. 1915

Galvanized iron, canvas

Donated by C. B. Corby

1965.118.5

[1] John S. Barnett, "Fruit Pickers Receptacle," US Patent 978,429. Filed February 16, 1910, and issued December 13, 1910. Google Patents, http://www.google.com/patents?id=1a9OAAAAEBAJ&printsec=abstract&zoom=4#v=onepage&q&f=false, accessed August 30, 2011.

[2] "Barnett Fruit Picking" in Better Fruit XI, no. 3 (September 1916), 30. http://www.archive.org/stream/betterfruit11wash/betterfruit11wash_djvu.txt, accessed August 30, 2011.

[3] Ibid.

Advertisement from The Oregon Grower 3-5 (1921). http://books.google.com/books?id=HclNAAAAYAAJ, accessed August 30, 2011.

Object of the Week!

Would you decorate with hair? The Holland family did in the late 1800s - Mrs. Mary Holland and her daughter Mary Lorina Hall collected hair from every family member to use in this wreath. Curled into many recognizable forms, the hair takes the shape of flowers and plants.

Hair wreath

Hair, wire

3527.1

Object of the Week

Talk about conspicuous consumption! With feet allowing this dinner bell to rest on the table, those using it wouldn't even have to lift it. Simply and daintily tap the rod, and the bell would chime, summoning servants to the table. Representing Victorian excessiveness and a desire to display wealth, this dinner bell is one of many objects created for a single and specific use. Etched with the initials "M. L. R.", its original owner was Mary Louis Ross, rumored to be the first white girl born in Jacksonville.

Dinner bell, c. 1880
Silver-plated
Manufactured by Reed and Barton of Taunton, MA
Donated by Harold Heldreth
1983.56.4

Object of the Week!

We're starting a new feature on our blog! Each week we'll feature an object from our collection and a short description. Let us know what you think!

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This miniature kayak, with its narrow, wooden frame, must have been designed to glide gracefully and quickly through the water. But unlike the traditional double-bladed kayak paddle, this orange oar only has one blade! One of the defining features between a kayak and a canoe is the number of blades on the oar, so why do you think this model would have a paddle with only one blade?

Miniature Kayak

Model

Skin and wood

Donated by Judge and Mrs. Herbert Hanna

1959.14.44.6