Chapter 4

The life story of Susan B. Anthony is a record of 60 years of devotion and work for the enfranchisement of women. An organizer and director of countless suffrage activities, she was tireless in conducting campaigns for woman suffrage. She is the one individual who has become so identified with the fight for woman suffrage that, more than any other, her name has become synonymous with that term. During her lifetime she worked in almost every capacity in the organized movement. She became president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association in 1892 and served until her 80th birthday in 1900. On that occasion the Colorado Equal Suffrage Association presented her with a miniature, three-handled loving cup that stands only 3-3/4 inches high (fig. 18). In one section of the cup there is engraved the word "Colorado" and the state's coat of arms; in an adjoining section is an engraving of the state flower; and in the third section is the following inscription:

Colorado Equal Suffrage Association to Susan B. Anthony on her 80th Birthday 1900.

The cup is marked on the bottom "Sterling, 590, A. J. Stark & Co., Denver."

She was also given a silver-plated teakettle[35] by the Political Equality Club of Rochester, New York. The stand is 3-1/2 inches high, and the teapot is 5-1/4 inches high. Engraved around the top of the teapot is:

Susan B. Anthony 1820-1893.

The stand is marked "Mfd. & Plated Reed & Barton" and "65."

The chosen leader of the Woman Suffrage Movement after 1900 was Mrs. Carrie Chapman Catt, a vigorous organizer and campaigner who led the drive for the constitutional amendment that was finally ratified in 1920. Mrs. Catt founded the International Woman Suffrage Alliance in 1902 and served as its president until 1923. Her late years were devoted to the cause of international peace and disarmament.

Mrs. Catt was the prime mover in calling the first international conference on suffrage, which, in 1902, welcomed representatives from nine foreign nations--Great Britain, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Turkey, Russia, Australia, and Chile. The delegates were honored guests at the National Suffrage Convention then in session in Washington where they also attended two congressional hearings on suffrage and were received by President Theodore Roosevelt at the White House.[36] Mrs. Catt was given a silver tray[37] inscribed:

To Carrie Chapman Catt from the foreign delegates to the First International Suffrage Conference, Washington, D.C., Feb. 12-18, 1902.

The back of the tray is marked "Galt & Bro. Sterling, 386." The Galt silver firm is in Washington, D.C.

The campaign for the first referendum in the state of New York on woman suffrage was considered to be the most decisive of all the state fights. New York was divided into 12 campaign districts working under Mrs. Catt. The campaign was most vigorously waged, but the referendum was defeated.[38] After the New York campaign Mrs. Catt received a silver gilt tray[39] inscribed:

Honorable Carrie Chapman Catt from Katherine Howard Notman

Eleventh Assembly District Campaign Chairman, 1915

The right of the citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex.

The tray is marked on the reverse "Tiffany and Co., 18154, Makers 811, Sterling Silver, 925/1000/M."

Mrs. Catt had started the suffrage movement in the Philippine Islands when she visited there in 1912 and organized the first suffrage club in Manila. In 1937 the Philippine legislature submitted the question of votes for women to the women of the Islands themselves. The campaign committee working out of Manila sent native women campaigners throughout the Islands to be sure all races and religions were represented in the vote. Mrs. Catt raised money in this country and sent it to the campaign committee to help with the fight.[40] Over half a million Philippine women voted favorably on the question, and several months later Mrs. Catt was presented with a silver plaque, mounted on native woods, that is now in the Museum's collection.[41] It is inscribed:

In grateful acknowledgement of the moral and financial aid given by the women of America through Carrie Chapman Catt to the women of the Philippines through the International Federation of Women's Clubs in their struggles for their political rights culminating in ultimate victory in April, 1937.

FOR SPORTS EVENTS

The earliest of the sports trophies in the collection is an ornate belt (fig. 19) made of blue velvet upon which are mounted five engraved silver plates connected by silver straps. On the center plate is the inscription:

6 Days Bicycle Champion Belt of Scotland Won by H. W. Higham Nottingham 19th June 1880 Contested at Glasgow

One of the two adjoining smaller plates has an engraving of a man riding a high-wheeled bicycle, and the other has an engraving of a man standing beside a similar bicycle. The two outer plates are engraved with Scottish coats of arms. The belt is 34-1/2 inches long and 3 inches wide.

Trophies were awarded for competition among the various makes of cars almost as early as the advent of the automobile itself. The earliest such trophy in the Museum's collection is a three-handled, cut-glass cup[42] with a wide silver rim on which is engraved:

Automobile Club of New Jersey. Eagle Rock Hill Climbing Contest. First Prize Nov. 5, 1901.

The prize was won by Charles E. Duryea who drove an automobile of his own manufacture.

Most important of the automobile trophies was the Vanderbilt Cup (fig. 20) for racing, which was established by William K. Vanderbilt, Jr., in 1904 to bring the best cars of foreign make to the United States so that domestic manufacturers could observe them. It is believed that the trophy contributed in this way to the rapid development of the automobile in the United States. The Vanderbilt Cup races were held annually in the United States under the auspices of the American Automobile Association.

The silver cup, measuring 23 inches high and 20 inches in diameter and weighing about 40 pounds, is engraved with statistics of the various races--such as dates, winners, types of cars, distances, and times.[43] There is a wreath around the brim, and the front is decorated with a period racing car in repoussé. The inscription reads:

Challenge Cup Presented by W. K. Vanderbilt Jr. American Automobile Assn. under deed of gift to be raced for yearly by cars under 1000 kilos.

On the inside of the stem is marked "Tiffany and Co." and "35 pints."

Athletic trophies in the collection include eight silver and silver-plated loving cups awarded for athletic events to the crew members of various ships of the U.S. Navy.[44] The sporting events represented include baseball and football games, canoe and cutter races, and track meets held among the fleet between 1903 and 1915.

TROWELS FOR CORNERSTONE LAYING

The National Museum also has a small collection of silver trowels used for laying cornerstones of public buildings. There is an ivory-handled trowel (fig. 21) with the inscription:

This Trowel was used by His Excellency Ulysses S. Grant. President of the United States in laying the Corner Stone of the Building erected by the Department of Public Parks for the American Museum of Natural History and presented to him by the Trustees of the Museum New York June 2^nd 1874.

There are also some silver trowels in the Bishop Matthew Simpson Collection.[45] The earliest of these is inscribed:

Presented to Bishop Simpson D.D.L.L.D. at a laying of a stone of the New Wesleyan Church, Willesden, in commemoration of the 1st Methodist OEcumenical Conference held in London, Sept. 10, 1881.

This trowel (cat. 38199) bears the English standard marks with the initials "H. H."

On the same trip to London Bishop Simpson received an ivory-handled silver trowel (cat. 38198) inscribed:

Presented to Bishop Simpson upon his laying the foundation stone of Clouditte Methodist Church, Dublin, 12th October, 1881.

Another silver trowel in the same collection is inscribed:

Used by Bishop Simpson at the laying of the cornerstone of the Wenonah Methodist Episcopal Church, Wenonah, New Jersey, Aug. 15, 1883, and presented to him in loving remembrance of his presence.

This trowel (cat. 38197) is marked "Coin" on the back.

The fourth trowel, given to Mrs. Simpson, is inscribed as follows:

Presented to Mrs. Bishop Matthew Simpson by the Lady Managers in loving remembrance of her laying the cornerstone of the Methodist Episcopal Orphanage, Philadelphia, Oct. 13, 1887.

The back of this trowel (cat. 38208) is marked "Sterling."

FIRE TRUMPETS

Three fire trumpets in a collection[46] on loan from the Insurance Company of North America are inscribed as presentation pieces. One of these is 22 inches high and has eagle-head handles and an overall repoussé design. This trumpet is engraved:

May 1871 Retired from active service by the establishment of the Volunteer Fire Department In grateful remembrance we restore to Samuel G. Simpson his handsome gift presented by him to the Southwark Fire Co. Nov. 7, 1865.

Another trumpet is engraved with crossed ladders, pikes, and fire helmets against an overall floral design. It is 19-1/2 inches high. The inscription reads:

Presented to Vigilant Engine Co. #6 of Paterson New Jersey at the Annual Fair of the Willis Street Baptist Church April 1879.

The inscription on the third trumpet reads simply:

Presented to Captain George W. Erb by the Ladies of St. Rose's Fair.

It has an elaborate engine-engraved design and is 21-1/2 inches high.

* * * * *

U.S. Government Printing Office: 1965

For sale by Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 Price 30 cents

* * * * *

_Paper 47, pages 81-108, from UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 241_:

CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION WASHINGTON, D.C. 1965

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FOOTNOTES:

[1] Bequest of Arthur Michaels (acc. 162866, cat. 383497), Division of Cultural History, USNM.

[2] E. ALFRED JONES, _The Old Silver of American Churches_ (National Society of Colonial Dames of America, 1913), pp. 68-69 and pl. 27.

[3] Bequest of Arthur Michaels (acc. 162866, cat. 383549), Division of Cultural History, USNM.

[4] H. MAXSON HOLLOWAY, "American Presentation Silver," _New-York Historical Society Quarterly_ (October 1946), vol. 30, p. 228.

[5] "The Journal of the Proceedings of the Commissioners Plenipotentiary, Appointed on Behalf of the United States to Treat with the Northwestern Tribes of Indians," _American State Papers ... Indian Affairs_, vol. 1, pp. 826-836.

[6] G. Carroll Lindsay, "The Treaty Pipe of the Delawares," _Antiques_ (1958), vol. 74, no. 1, pp. 44-45.

[7] Gift of Thomsen H. Alexander (acc. 63880, cat. 22995), Division of Political History, USNM.

[8] Bequest of Amy Wetmore May (acc. 190331, cat. 387945), Division of Political History, USNM.

[9] Gift of Estate of Sophie P. Casey (acc. 171620, cat. 44364), Division of Political History, USNM.

[10] Bequest of Henry R. Magruder (acc. 47577, cat. 10793), Division of Political History, USNM.

[11] EARL CHAPIN MAY, _Century of Silver 1847-1947: Connecticut Yankees and a Noble Metal_ (New York: McBride and Co., 1947), pl. 36.

[12] Loan of Mrs. Samuel Reber (acc. 87949, cat. 35145), Division of Armed Forces History, USNM.

[13] _Infantry_ (vol. 2 of _The Army Lineage Book_), Washington, 1953.

[14] Loan of Metropolitan Museum of Art (acc. 64761, cat. 26209), Division of Political History, USNM.

[15] ISABELLA FIELD JUDSON, ed., _Cyrus W. Field, His Life and Work_ (New York, 1896), p. 110.

[16] Gift of Isabella Field Judson (acc. 116488, cat. 37662), Division of Political History, USNM.

[17] Gift of Isabella Field Judson (acc. 32290, cat. 7214), Division of Political History, USNM.

[18] Gift of William Lilly (acc. 103012, cat. 35780), Division of Political History, USNM.

[19] Gift of William Lilly (acc. 103012, cats. 35781-82), Division of Political History, USNM.

[20] JOHN D. CHAMPLIN, Jr., ed., _Narrative of the Mission to Russia in 1866 of the Hon. Gustavus Vasa Fox from the Journal and Notes of J. F. Loubat_ (New York, 1873), p. 264.

[21] Snuffboxes were given by sovereigns to those who were not allowed to receive decorations. Such boxes were of three grades: plain gold boxes, boxes set with diamonds, and boxes having both diamonds and the sovereign's miniature. The latter were given only to persons of the highest distinction.

[22] CHAMPLIN, p. 359.

[23] Gift of Elizabeth Hardenburg (acc. 53695, cat. 12782), Division of Political History, USNM.

[24] From a speech by Cox delivered in the House of Representatives, April 24, 1888.

[25] Gift of Katherine Batcheller (acc. 112477, cat. 36871), Division of Political History, USNM.

[26] Collection gift of Mrs. R. S. Wortley (acc. 136891), Division of Naval History, USNM.

[27] Gift of Nellie G. Gunther (acc. 84594, cat. 35647), Division of Naval History, USNM.

[28] Loan of Robert E. Peary (acc. 52878), Division of Naval History, USNM.

[29] Loan of Mrs. Robert E. Peary (acc. 177710, cat. 46014), Division of Naval History, USNM.

[30] Gift of Lincoln Isham (acc. 227132.1), Division of Political History, USNM.

[31] Gift of Mrs. James R. Mann (acc. 70676, cats. 34113-14), Division of Political History, USNM.

[32] The cup (acc. 66168, cat. 30852) was deposited in the United States National Museum (Division of Political History) by the Honorable John. H. Small, who was chairman of the group of traveling Congressmen.

[33] Gift of Harriot Stanton Blatch (acc. 127776, cat. 38762), Division of Political History, USNM.

[34] Gift of Harriot Stanton Blatch (acc. 127776, cat. 38763), Division of Political History, USNM.

[35] Gift of National American Woman Suffrage Association (acc. 64601, cat. 26162), Division of Political History, USNM.

[36] MARY GRAY PECK, _Carrie Chapman Catt_ (New York: H. W. Wilson Co., 1944), pp. 121-122.

[37] Gift of National American Woman Suffrage Association (acc. 147840, cat. 42083), Division of Political History, USNM.

[38] PECK, op. cit., pp. 220-232.

[39] Gift of National American Woman Suffrage Association (acc. 147840, cat. 42084), Division of Political History, USNM.

[40] PECK, op. cit., pp. 457-458.

[41] Gift of National American Woman Suffrage Association (acc. 147840, cat. 42085), Division of Political History, USNM.

[42] Gift of Mrs. Charles Duryea (acc. 144429, cat. 311338), Division of Transportation, USNM.

[43] Statistics on the cup for the races held from 1904 to 1916 are an interesting record of the development of the automobile. For instance, the winning speed increased from 52.2 miles per hour in 1904 to 86.99 miles per hour in 1916.

[44] These trophies were received as a transfer from the Department of Defense (acc. 83961).

[45] Gift of the Misses Simpson (acc. 104604), Division of Political History, USNM.

[46] (Acc. 138182, cat. 311087), Division of Transportation, USNM.

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Transcriber's note:

All footnotes were moved to the end of the text.

Some illustrations have been moved.

A List of Illustrations was added.

Archaic and variable spelling is preserved.

The author's punctuation style is preserved.

The following changes were made to the original text:

Page 92: =silverplated= standardized to =silver-plated= (by the Meriden Britannia Company for its high-grade, =silver-plated= hollow-ware made on a base of silver nickel.)

Page 92: =old-English= standardized to =old English= (and has the initials "J R M" in =old English= letters engraved on the side.)

Footnote 25: Added period after =cat= (Gift of Katherine Batcheller (acc. 112477, =cat.= 36871), Division of Political History, USNM.)

Footnote 26: =UNSM= changed to =USNM= (Collection gift of Mrs. R. S. Wortley (acc. 136891), Division of Naval History, =USNM=.)