History Using Material Culture

A day hardly goes by that we do not see the warm welcome of one of our United States service men or women returning home to their loving family.  War is war regardless of what era you grew up in, and coming home a changed person is a fact of war.  No one but another service person knows the times of extreme discomfort you have faced, the moments of fear you endured and pushed through, or the feelings that go with being that far from your loved one for extended periods of time when you cannot just “change your mind” and go home.  However, the stories our service people bring home from war help those of us at home understand how they stay so committed to keeping us safe. 

During WWII Sergeant Oda A. Smathers from Ashville, NC served our country as a Radio Operator, and he took his job seriously.  Much of his tour of duty was spent on the Teggie Ann.  A flying fortress with great range and load capability, the Teggie Ann was in high demand.  Sgt. Smathers went where she went until one fateful mission when he was wounded by a burst of flak that exploded beside the plane. 

Before

Decorated for many valiant contributions to WWII while serving on the Teggie Ann, not all his adventures overseas were combat driven.  One such adventure involved a 3-day break, a month’s pay, and a date for the evening that turned into the young man staying behind while Teggie Ann when out on mission and left him saying, “The way I feel about that just ain’t printable”.  This is just one story Sgt. Smathers and his bomber jacket have to tell.  This amazing piece of history has recently been conserved by East Carolina University. The jacket had some mold damage, corrosion, and the decals were starting to flake off. The wonderful conservators at the University were able to fix the damage and bring new life to the jacket that has seen so much.

After

Fourth Grade Programming Time!

The education staff kicked off our 2013-2014 school year on October 16^th. Sherwood elementary visited the school and enjoyed our 4^th grade program, “America in the 19^th century.”  This program, like many of our school programs, is a station based, third person program that utilizes the wonderful facilities of the Gaston County Museum to illustrate a wide range of historic interests to the students.

The program is viewed through the eyes of a common visitor to the museum. As the children pass through the stations, they see the working environments of the hotel workers throughout the 19^th century. The workers illustrate many aspects of the nation during the Victorian era. By utilizing local places, names, and scenarios the era is easily illustrated to the children in an interactive, energetic format.

The stations we usually present during this program are an overview of the parlors and gathering room.  The children then travel upstairs to the third floor where four hotel rooms are interpreted. A short material culture talk and demonstration follows the rooms. Students then travel to the carriage house and experience 19^th century transportation first hand. The program concludes in the basement with a hands-on rich domestic station.

We look forward to a school year filled with visiting students. Soon we’ll take a look at some of our specialty holiday programming and special events that add to the educational experience. 

What is this?

In our description process for artifacts, curators refer to a book called “Nomenclature”. This was set out by previous museum professionals to make a system for describing and classifying objects for easier use across the museum field. It is similar to scientists classifying animals and plants. It isn't often as straight forward though. Different items can go by different names and a singular item name can have multiple uses. For example:

Button

Campaign Button

Button 

A button has many forms: a campaign button or a clothing button. One is advertising a statement and the other is used to keep clothing together.

Photograph
Photographs can be an art form but can also document an event like a birthday party.

Log

A log could be the piece of cut up tree we use to make buildings. Or it could be a record that a ship captain kept on his voyage.

All items are ordered under their wider use: structures, furnishings, personal artifacts, tools & equipment for materials, tools & equipment for science and technology, tools & equipment for communication, distribution & transportation artifacts, communication artifacts, recreational artifacts, and unclassifiable artifacts. Then within each there are smaller categories down to the actual item. Most are in a three part classification system.

          Communication Artifact – Documentary Artifact- Print, Photographic
          Communication Artifact – Art – Print, Photographic
          Personal Artifacts – Clothing—Accessory – Button
          Communication Artifact – Personal Symbol – Button, Campaign
          Communication Artifact – Documentary Artifact – Log, Ship’s
          Structures – Building Component - Log

Occasionally we receive items that we can’t identify. This is where visual dictionaries, the internet, and colleagues are extremely useful. We have a listserv that we can post a picture of our unidentifiable object and usually someone will know what it is. We like to think we know every single thing ever made, but sadly this is not the case.

Something you may not know about the Gaston County Museum:

We love volunteers and we have folks who work as greeters and gift shop guides, and folks who help in the Curatorial Department, even gardening folks who have amazing green thumbs, and those folks who like to help with exhibit construction – did we mention programs people who assist with interpreting educational programs for school groups? There are areas you might just fit into!  

Call Elaine Jackson @ 704-922-7681, x. 100 and ask about our volunteer opportunities.

Would you like to be a museum member?

If you feel supporting the Gaston County Museum of Art & History would be a good thing to do, we invite you to join in the month of October. You may ask, “what does membership give me” – good question:

             1) You receive quarterly newsletters telling about all upcoming programs, exhibits & events (some of which offer members’ discounts)

     2)10% discount in the gift shop on all items that are not consignment – (have you seen the neat toys and books we have for sale?

     3)Invitations to Members Only events –this may be first-peek at the newest exhibits and a chance to meet our staff, trustees and volunteers.

Think about being a museum supporter and doing the right thing for your community!