Figure lo. — Homemade torch, i860, 

 (Smithsonian photo 30818-G.) 



collections of the division of cultural history. Two 

 other examples of this torch were acquired by the 

 United States National Museum on September 17, 

 1959, from the Heitmuller heirs and are now in the 

 division of political history. Other examples were put 

 on the open market and are now in the hands of 

 dealers and collectors. An illustration and descrip- 

 tion of this torch also appears in a United States 

 National Museum publication entitled Collection of 

 heating and lighting utensils in the United States National 

 Museum. The diameter of this torch is Aji inches, the 

 torch bowl is 7% inches high and the overall length 

 including the metal rod handle is 34 inches. The 

 torches swivel and the weight of the pipe in the top 

 cause them to be top-heavy. Some of the torches 

 appear to have been weighted to give them balance. 



TRANSPARENCY, 1 860 Figure 77 



US.NM 238747 (Hubbard accession) 



Color transparencies were widely used during the 

 campaign of 1860. Made of cheesecloth canvas sup- 

 ported by a wooden frame, these objects contained 

 torches and were quite effective in parades. One 

 example often seen in engravings was that bearing an 

 extremely large eye showing the eyeball and lashes and 

 bearing the wording "Wide Awakes." Such a trans- 

 parency appears in the illustration shown on page 4. 

 Another interesting transparency is this triangular 

 object which has a legend on each side with one side 

 having both a legend and a cutout engraving of Abra- 

 ham Lincoln. A three-burner torch fastened to the 



Figure 11. — Transparency, 186c 

 (Smithsonian photo 48331 -A.) 



inside came with the transparency illustrated in this 

 figure. Each side of the transparency is 27}^ inches 

 wide and 21)^ inches high. 



TIN LANTERN, 1864 Figure 12 



USNM 227739 (Becker Collection) 



In 1864, several interesting illuminating lanterns 

 appeared on the market. This one, made of tin, 

 contains three panels, each measuring 6}^ inches by 

 8 inches and each containing a glass with a design 

 pasted on the outside to prevent its paper from 

 burning. This particular lantern features a likeness 

 of George McClellan on one side, the legend "Union 

 and the Constitution" on the second side, and the 

 legend "Little Mac" on the third side. The paper 

 inserts were often copyrighted and examples are 

 found in the collections of the prints and photographs 

 division, Library of Congress. Although some have 

 survived, the paper flakes off very easily and, for that 

 reason, they are likely to deteriorate l)eyond recogni- 

 tion without proper care. 



22 



BULLETIN 24 1 : CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



