Gathering A Crowd

the history of itinerant glassworkers

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“Only Mrs. during the month of December”: Grace Howell’s holiday glass gig

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Those walking past the Manhattan Savings Bank in December 1961 were in for a treat. Peeking in the windows, passerby were treated to a sumptuous display of Christmas decorations, a singing Santa Claus and his elves, carolers, an ice rink complete with four ice skaters, and Mrs. Santa Claus making glass.

Wurts Bros. 45th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Manhattan Savings Bank, new branch, front view from east showing Christmas decorations. Source: Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10288 (https://collections.mcny.org/CS.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&VBID=24UP1GXD6A54&SMLS=1&RW=1302&RH=723)
Wurts Bros. 47th Street. Manhattan Savings Bank, general view of lobby looking N.E. Source: Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10210 (https://collections.mcny.org/CS.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&VBID=24UP1GXD6SRW&SMLS=1&RW=1302&RH=723)
Wurts Bros. 47th Street. Manhattan Savings Bank, Christmas show, ice skaters in. Source: Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10208 (https://collections.mcny.org/CS.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&VBID=24UP1GXD64FQ&SMLS=1&RW=1302&RH=723)
Wurts Bros. 45th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Manhattan Savings Bank, Christmas carolers. Source: Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.13752 (https://collections.mcny.org/CS.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&VBID=24UP1GXD623Q&SMLS=1&RW=1302&RH=723)

That’s right, Mrs. Claus – otherwise known as Grace Howell – “spends her days [at the bank] blowing colorful baubles and Christmas ornaments.”  According to a profile in her hometown newspaper, The Scotch Plains Times, she is equally “adept at blowing the molten globs of glass into airy vases, birds, flowers, jewelry, or an intricate replica of a sailing ship.”1

black and white photo of Grace Howell, dressed as Mrs. Santa Claus, blowing glass for onlookers

Wurts Bros. 45th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Manhattan Savings Bank, Mrs. Santa Claus, glass blower. Source: Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10211

The Howell family of itinerant glassworkers

Grace Howell was the eldest child of Robert M. Howell and Ethel Maude Howell, two itinerant glassworkers who traveled the country demonstrating to the public. Grace’s parents taught her to lampwork as early as the age of five, and after years of practice she joined their demonstrations around the age of twelve. Her siblings, Robert Jr., Nona, and Leigh, followed in her footsteps, and by the 1930s the Howells demonstrated together as a family act. They were frequently on the road, living in a housecar with a lampworking studio attached. In the off-season they rented or purchased a home and made glass for sale.2

A black and white photograph of a family of lampworkers in a booth. Two young women stand in front of the booth at either side. Seated behind the booth are, from left to right, a woman, a man, and a young man. The booth and shelves behind the booth are covered in pieces of glass, including items such as stags, ships, vases, and bunches of grapes.

Howell Family of Chelmsford, 1937-1945. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 151522.

Between performances Grace Howell completed high school, then took a break from the family business to work for a mail-order house company.3 She later became the family’s business agent, booking performances across the country.

Going solo

By 1953, and possibly earlier, Howell was demonstrating on her own, up and down the East Coast. She performed for scout troops, day camps, schools, and PTAs. “I don’t believe there is a major highway in the country, unless it was built in the last four years, which I haven’t traveled,” she told a reporter.4 She made regular appearances at fairs, craft shows, festivals, and banks. Howell worked at New Jersey-area attractions like the Gingerbread Castle and the Cannon Ball House, and appeared on television variety shows (including those of Johnny Carson and Dave Garroway). Her most recognizable appearance, however, may have been as a lampworking Mrs. Santa Claus in the window of the Manhattan Savings Bank.

Grace Howell demonstrates lampworking in the window of the Manhattan Savings Bank in New York City, 1963. Source: The Joint Digital Archives of Fanwood & Scotch Plains
Grace Howell lampworking glass in front of a crowd, 1964. Source: Newspapers.com
Grace Howell demonstrates lampworking to children, 1967. Source: The Joint Digital Archives of Fanwood & Scotch Plains

Howell spent at least a decade of Decembers in New York City, demonstrating her skills to fascinated crowds. Newspaper reporter Hannah Torain wrote, “Her excellence in glass blowing is complemented by her lively wit and warmth reflected on the faces of her onlookers.” She dressed as Mrs. Claus, from the fur-trimmed hat to a pair of rosy cheeks. She didn’t need makeup for the latter either: the heat of her lampworking torch helped with that. “That kind of heat will change the color of anything, even your glassblower,” Howell quipped. “I wear a perpetual sunburn.”5

black and white newspaper photo of Grace Howell, dressed as Mrs. Claus, showing some of her glass creations

Grace Howell as Mrs. Santa Claus, 1963. Source: The Joint Digital Archives of Fanwood & Scotch Plains

Reporters who wrote about Howell often commented on her humor, and it comes through in their articles. To one writer she joked, “[I’m] only Mrs. in the month of December.”6

 

Scott’s splendid glass working exhibition in miniature

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“Superior to any thing of the kind ever offered for public inspection.”

A bold statement, but itinerant glassworker Scott had a list of reasons why his exhibition was a must-see display in 1830s Brighton, England. This handbill, distributed around town, features a detailed image of Scott, surrounded by fascinated onlookers, as he manipulates glass rods over a flame. Along with the many magnificent pieces of glass he claimed would be on display, who could resist stopping by 115 St. James Street?

handbill with text describing a glassworking demonstration. the handbill also has an illustration of a glass artist lampworking in front of a table covered in objects; he is surrounded by onlookers.

Scott’s Splendid Glass Working Exhibition in Miniature. United Kingdom: 1830. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 138463.

Location

Scott had previously exhibited his show in London, where he demonstrated to the nobility and gentry who shopped at the exclusive boutiques in Burlington Arcade. So he may have seen some familiar faces in the seaside town of Brighton, which had become a fashionable resort during the Georgian era. Many visitors came to “take the cure” by drinking or bathing in seawater, while others were “attracted by the presence of Royalty.”1

Watercolor painting of Brighton beach and promenade

Brighton: the front and the chain pier seen in the distance. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Frederick William Woledge, painter, public domain). Courtesy of the Paul Mellon Collection, Yale Center for British Art, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.

“Brighton,” wrote Charles Knight, a British editor and author, “stands near the centre of the curved line of coast of which the east and west points are respectively Beachy Head and Selsea Bill. The town is built on a slope, and is defended from the north winds by the high land of the South Downs, which, from Beachy Head as far as the central part of Brighton, press close on the sea and form high chalk cliffs. From the central part of Brighton westward the hills recede farther from the sea, leaving a level coast.”2

Watercolor painting of Brighton Beach, showing several boats on the beach, with buildings to the right on the cliff.

Brighton Beach Looking West, undated. Source: Wikimedia Commons (John Constable, painter, public domain)

On the town itself, Knight commented, “The best part of Brighton may be described as composed of ranges of splendid houses, formed into squares and handsome streets. The parish church of St. Nicholas, an ancient edifice, stands on a hill north-west of the town. The town-hall, begun in 1830, on the site of the old market, nearly in the centre of the town, is a large but ill-designed edifice . . . The inns, hotels, and baths of Brighton are numerous, and there are several places of amusement – a theatre, an assembly room, a club house, and, about a mile east of the town, on the summit of a beautiful part of the Downs, a fine race-course. The trade of Brighton is confined exclusively to the supply of the wants of a rich population.” 3 When Scott demonstrated in Brighton in 1830, this population had swelled to over 40,000 people, up from just over half that number a decade prior.

Illustration of a dance filled with people in fancy dress.

The Circular Room, or a Squeeze at Carlton Palace, The English Spy, 1825. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Isaac Cruikshank, illustrator, public domain)

Writer Mary Philadelphia Merrifield described Brighton crowds in the 1850s: “Gaily-dressed ladies, and over-dressed children, throng the esplanades; the military band plays in the Pavilion grounds twice a week; the Town and other bands are met on the Cliff; groups of Ethiopian Serenaders parade the streets; Wizards from the North, South, East, and West, send forth their advertisements, and hope to draw crows to the Pavilion, Dome, or Concert Hall.”4

Illustration of people on foot and horseback traveling up and down a promenade

Characters on the Steyne, Brighton, The English Spy, 1825. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Isaac Cruikshank, illustrator, public domain)

Patrons

Scott appealed directly to this wealthy population in his advertisement, informing the “Nobility, Gentry, Visitors, and Inhabitants of Brighton” that his exhibition was open for a “short time” on St. James Street. Some of the attendees would doubtlessly be members of the fashionable crowd spotted in ballrooms and on promenades.

But Scott had an advantage over his fellow “Wizards”: he had the patronage of the Duchess of Kent and her daughter, Princess Victoria. Crowned queen in 1837, Victoria was eleven years old in 1830, still living under the protective watch of her mother and Sir John Conroy. Perhaps the princess and her mother saw Scott at the Burlington Arcade, although it seems much more likely that he would have demonstrated for them privately at Kensington Palace. Either way, their patronage was a powerful marketing tool for Scott, especially given that Victoria had recently become the heir presumptive to the British throne.

Portrait of Victoria, Duchess of Kent, Richard Rothwell, 1832. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Richard Rothwell, painter, public domain) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Victoria_of_Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld_-_Rothwell_1832.jpg
Queen Victoria (1819-1901) when a Girl, Richard Westall, 1830. Collection of the Royal Collection Trust, RCIN 400135.

Queen Victoria and her husband, Prince Albert, later became significant patrons of the arts. They collected, curated, patronized, and promoted artists and creators of many disciplines.5 Did Victoria ever think of the dazzling glass objects created by Scott? Fellow British glassworker Lawrence Finn claimed that part of the queen’s wedding dress was made of spun glass, so perhaps Scott’s talent for spinning 1,000 yards of glass per minute into delicate threads made an impression.6

Show highlights

Scott’s handbill proclaims the show was “by far the most instructive, entertaining, and cheap exhibition.” Admission was one shilling for adults7 and sixpence for children and servants. This price would gain a visitor entry to witness Scott’s splendid skills and “a Specimen . . . in any Article they may select or desire to have made.”

“The Artist” delighted audience members by “Working, Blowing, and Modelling” objects in a variety of colors, “exhibited so as to give at one view an idea of this most ingenious manufacture.” As mentioned above, Scott used a spinning wheel (shown in the advertisement) to spin one pound of glass into 20,000 yards of thread, at the rate of 1,000 yards per minute.8

Also to be seen was a glass ship, the Lord Mayor’s coach with six horses, and many other wonders “patronized . . . by every Family of distinction in England.” Visitors must have been fascinated by Scott’s hydraulic glass skeleton, which was “kept in continual motion by itself, showing how the blood passes through the different channels of the human frame.” This model was apparently a favorite of the royal family.9 Featured for sale were a variety of glass goods, including vases, chandeliers, hydrostatic balloons, and fancy figures.

Between his royal patronage and the wonders described on his advertisement, it is easy to imagine Scott’s exhibition was well attended by many people of quality in the busy seaside resort of Brighton.

A version of this post was originally published on the Corning Museum of Glass blog on May 7, 2014.

Johannes Kunckel on the art of lampworking

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In 1679, Johannes Kunckel published his translation of Antonio Neri’s L’Arte vetraria (The Art of Glass): Ars Vitraria experimentalis, oder vollkommene Glasmacher-Kunst. Neri’s book was the first to focus solely on the subject of glassmaking and became an important manual for European glassmakers.1

Reprinted and translated into several languages, the book was owned by everyone from Galileo Galilei to Charles II, king of England. Each time the book was translated, the author would add his own glass knowledge, making L’Arte vetraria a living text. A chemist and director of a glassworks, Kunckel made his mark on the German translation by including the first-known description of lampworking.

Portrait of Johannes Kunckel, 1689. Source: Wikimedia Commons (N. van Werd) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Johannes_Kunckel_von_Löwenstern_Portrait.jpg
Ars Vitraria Experimentalis title page, 1743. Source: Wikimedia Commons (Johannes Kunckel) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kunckel_Titelblatt_1743.jpg

In a section titled “On little glass blowing,” Kunckel writes:

“The technique of lamp blowing is not the most useful in the art of glass but it is a sector of glass art that makes it possible to create elegant objects. I shall offer a brief description here.

“First of all, one must procure small canes or perforated tubes, also partially solid, of good clear glass and of any kind of color in a furnace. The best pieces are those of broken Venetian glass. One needs a workbench (A), as can be seen in the illustration [below], where four or more persons can work, each with a lamp (B) fueled by colza oil or something similar, supplied by a robust wick of pressed cotton. Below the bench are bellows (D), driven by the craftsman by means of a pedal (E) that pushes the air through a small metal tube going across the bench. The end of the small tube is indicated as (C), inside of which another small tube that is curved forwards is inserted, ending with a narrow hole for the air to come out, which, striking the flame of the lamp the craftsman is working with, produces a concentrated and slim flame. The procedure is similar to the one adopted by a goldsmith to solder and cast metals. Once can also just use the mouth to blow on the tube. This results in a pointed flame that produces such a blazing heat that even the hardest glass softens.

“One takes a small glass tube and heats it in the flame at one end, while blowing at the other, thus creating a ball and anything else one desires, for example figurines, crucifixes, or small vases. Small tweezers and metal wire are also used to join the pieces of glass that the craftsman is heating in the flame. The small tube C is opposite each craftsman sitting at the bench. G is a small pulley with the rope that drives the bellows. F is a metal (or wood) funnel that is linked to a tube to allow the smoke and vapors from the lamp to escape. This art requires great study and an expert teacher.”2

Engraving of lampworking setup with three people around a wooden table, underneath which are bellows. On the table are three lamps which the people are using to shape glass.

Engraving of a lampworking workshop, Ars Vitraria Experimentalis, Johannes Kunckel, 1689. (Figure X opposite page 398.) Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 81288.

Kunckel’s description of lampworking has been quoted, translated, and copied countless times, influencing the reputation of this art for generations.3

Read Kunckel’s text in the original German4 and explore other editions of Antonio Neri’s L’Arte vetraria. For more on Neri and his work, visit Paul Engle’s website, Conciatore.org.

Visit the Deakin glass blowers in Sarasota, Florida

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During the mid-20th century, several glassblowing families set up shop in the state of Florida. Among them were John and Grace Deakin, who ran a store on US Route 41 in Sarasota. Close to other attractions including Horn’s Cars of Yesterday and the Ringling Art Museum,1 the Deakins demonstrated lampworking to curious visitors for free, six days a week, 9am-5pm.

In Sarasota the Glass Blowers Invite You to Visit. 1957. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 161884.
In Sarasota the Glass Blowers Invite You to Visit. 1957. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 161884.

The Deakins’ brochure promised “A rare opportunity to see the ancient art of free hand Bohemian glass blowing.” Once inside, visitors could see “rock crystal and beautiful colored glasses transformed into lovely gifts that are completely exclusive, yet moderately priced.”

Location

The Deakins’ small shop was located on North Tamiami Trail, the southern part of US Route 41. Running parallel to Sarasota Bay, the road was littered with tourist attractions, including the aforementioned Horn’s Cars of Yesterday and the Ringling Art Museum, the winter home of the Ringling family, the Circus Hall of Fame, an arts and crafts colony, a reptile farm and zoo, and the Sarasota Jungle Gardens, among others. Those arriving at the Sarasota-Bradenton Airport or driving through town could stop for a few hours or a few days to amuse themselves. The Deakin’s store was a modest building with large glass windows and signs to entice those driving by. No doubt the lack of an entry fee brought more than a few people through their doors. John claimed they saw 40,000 visitors each year.

Featured glassworkers

Once inside, visitors could see John and Grace Deakin making ships with delicate rigging, long-necked herons, elegant pitchers, and a range of miniature furniture perfect for a dollhouse. John learned glassworking from his first wife’s family, the Howells, during the Depression. He and Nona Deakin (née Howell) demonstrated lampworking from their home studio in New Jersey. After her death, John married Grace and relocated to Sarasota. The two opened The Glass Blowers shop to the public soon after.

Although not listed on the brochure, the Deakins’ son, John Robert, also worked in the family business. He began lampworking at the age of 12 and kept at it through high school. Their daughter, Kathrine, never learned to lampwork, but ran the store for several years after their parents died in the 1980s. She sold glass made by her father before his death, but without live glassworking, most tourists lost interest in the attraction. In the end, she sold the store and it was converted into a restaurant. Today the site is a parking lot for a Goodwill store.

The Deakins are a prime example of those mid-20th century lampworkers who began to settle down and attach themselves to tourist destinations, as opposed to going on tour. They still demonstrated lampworking and sold handmade glass, but they took a different sort of risk than the previous generation: they depended on their customers traveling to see them rather than traveling to the customers.

Adorable baby contests

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Most people agree: babies are cute. Much like kittens and puppies, attractive babies and babies doing funny things prompt smiles or laughter. You can find evidence of their popularity in the millions of photos and videos posted on social media sites and shared with friends and family. But which baby is the cutest?

wink 106 radio station website cute baby contest photo

Earlier this year I heard an ad for this adorable baby contest on the radio while on my way to give a presentation about itinerant glassworkers. Source: cbelmira.com

Today, a Google search for “adorable baby contest” produces 42.6 million results. There’s the “Cutest Baby Contest” page on Facebook, the Bidiboo “Baby Photo Contest” (with live voting results), and a baby photo contest on thecutekid.com with a $25,000 modeling contract prize. Parents who want to enter photos of their baby in a contest can find tips for winning shots on parenting websites and cautionary tales about stolen entry fees and voting fraud on scam detection sites.

What might surprise you is that these competitions have a long past. One hundred and fifty years ago, itinerant glassworking troupes like those of Madam Nora, Madam J. Reith,1 and the Woodroffe brothers hosted adorable baby contests of their own. Although they sometimes had grander titles – “Grand Carnival of Croesus and Contest of Infantile Beauty,” for example – the concept, popularity, and controversy they could cause is remarkably similar to the baby competitions of today.

detail of broadside, says baby show saturday

Madam Nora’s troupe was one of many that held these baby beauty competitions. Detail of Madame Nora’s Original Troupe of Glassblowers, 1876? Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 132079.

Concept

The idea behind adorable baby contests is simple: gather a group of babies or young children together and vote to determine which one is the cutest. Today, people upload photos to websites and social media platforms, where viewers all over the world can vote on their favorite baby. Some 19th-century competitions relied on photographs or allowed voters to submit any name they wished. During the last week of an 1881 show in Buffalo, New York, each attendee wrote the name of the most popular local baby under five years old on a card. The polls closed on Saturday at 4pm, and the winning baby received a piece of glass worth $75.

newspaper advertisement for baby show photographs

Local photography studios cashed in on the competitions as well, offering enlargements of photographs and extra deals for devoted parents. Advertisement from the May 30, 1907 issue of Webster’s Weekly, Reidsville, North Carolina. Source: Newspapers.com

Many competitions required the contestants to be on view at the glassworkers’ shows. An 1887 article about a competition run by Madam Nora’s troupe in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, documented the hazards of such an arrangement: “The crowd was so great that much difficulty was experienced in displaying the babies with any comfort either to the little ones or to the spectators.”2 Despite the packed room, 40 children under two years of age were entered into the competition and, according to the reporter, “their fond mothers had very good reason to feel proud of them, for they were beautiful babies . . . most of them were exhibited in handsome carriages and all were prettily attired.” The winning baby, Martha Howells, was presented her prize by a “committee of five disinterested ladies” selected by the troupe’s manager, Duncan C. Katen.3

newspaper ad for a madam j. rieth glassworking show

Madam J. Reith’s troupe was another that routinely held baby shows. Advertisement from the October 12, 1887 issue of The Morning Journal-Courier, New Haven, Connecticut. Source: Newspapers.com

Often, one vote was free, but in some cases additional votes could be purchased.  At a show put on by Woodroffe’s Original Bohemian Glass Blowers, extra votes cost ten cents a piece. This was a smart way for the glassworkers to make some additional money from attendees, especially those determined to see their favorite baby win first place. In this particular competition, the grand prize was a case of glass work worth $100 and the second prize was a fleet of glass ships worth $50, so many may have justified spending a few extra dollars on votes in hopes they would go home with a much more valuable prize.

At the 1881 show in Buffalo mentioned above, a grand total of 1,046 votes were cast. Assuming admission was at least ten cents (although it was likely more) and extra votes were ten cents, the glassworkers made over $100 just for the baby show, not counting the money they made the rest of the week on regular admissions and sales of glass souvenirs. This was a lucrative entertainment for any troupe to add to their act.

Popularity

Adorable baby contests were as popular in the 19th century as they are today, and newspaper writers reported on the events with great gusto.

An 1881 contest in Binghamton, New York, was reported on like an election. The Broome Republican stated: “the contest, which became more and more animated each succeeding day, culminated Saturday afternoon in a scene of feminine electioneering, which outdid in enthusiasm the greatest effort ever made at a political caucus by a lot of office seekers. Money was no object compared to votes for the favorites, and the large tin ballot box was full to the top when at 4 o’clock the polls were declared closed, and the votes were counted.” 4 An astonishing 4,400 votes were cast, and the results were clear: the “little favorite” Mabel Dunn won by a margin of around 600 votes.5

newspaper article on baby show voting results

Advertisement from the February 2, 1889, issue of The Daily Review, Wilmington, North Carolina. Source: Newspapers.com

Another contest held by Madam Nora’s troupe had over 101 entries. At that contest, The Hazelton Sentinel reported: “From the time the doors opened at 2:30 until the prettiest babe had been found and declared, the rink was filled to its utmost capacity. Married men, would-be married men, widowers, widows, and squealing babies were there in numbers and (excepting the old bachelors, who are as much afraid of babies as they are of women) all remained until the fun was non est.“6 Unusually, the contest resulted in a tie between babies Lawrence Eisenhuth and Theo Guth, each with 110 votes. To resolve the contest, a committee of nine women each cast one vote. Theo, at 21 months old, was declared victorious with a total of five votes to Lawrence’s four, and was awarded a “handsome glass shade, covering numerous glass ornaments that only dainty hands manufactured.”

Controversy

These competitions are not without their drama. Today, some parents balk at the idea of buying votes (no doubt many 19th century parents would agree).

Source: scam-detector.com

Others are convinced their baby should win, and that any other result is a scam.

Source: scam-detector.com

It’s no wonder some people avoid participating, especially as judges or contest organizers. An 1898 article in the Gibson City Courier joked: “We were inveigled into acting as a judge one year before we knew enough to ‘flee from the wrath to come,’ and in making one woman happy secured the everlasting enmity of nineteen. Now, we watch the baby show through a field glass.”7

While adorable baby contests were only one type of competition offered by itinerant glassworkers, they were by far the most popular, causing passionate participation and enthusiastic reporting. For glassworkers, the contests garnered a great deal of local attention, a healthy amount of revenue, and plenty of free publicity. And the winning babies (and parents) got the great distinction of being the most adorable – plus some beautiful glass.8

Detail from ad featuring text and image of a baby

Detail of Second and Positively Last Week of Woodroffe’s Original Bohemian Glass Blowers! Utica, New York: Grove & Bailey, 1881. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 151258.

Samuel Owen’s brilliant and astonishing exhibition

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Fresh from performing in P. T. Barnum’s Philadelphia museum, itinerant glassworker Samuel Owen published this broadside promoting his “artistic and mechanical skill” to the public.

Unlike many glassworkers, Owen did not include a location or start date for his show on the broadside. Instead, he directed interested readers to posted bills for those details. This likely saved him money, because he could use the same advertisements throughout his tour, rather than having specific copies printed for each town he visited. Regardless of place and date, Owen demonstrated twice daily at 3pm and 8pm.

Broadside for fancy glassworking show

Brilliant and Astonishing Exhibition of Artistic and Mechanical Skill. 1850. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 167731.

Pricing

Entry to the exhibition cost 12½ cents1 and each visitor received a glass pen as a memento. Including a piece of glass in the price of admission was a common strategy employed by itinerant glassworkers to entice potential customers through their doors. In this case, a pen was rather quick and simple to make, but it would likely have been exciting for a visitor to take home and show to family and friends.

Of course, Owen offered more elaborate glassware for sale, and many attendees probably bought a gift or two for friends, sweethearts, or children. Owen helpfully pointed out that the “delicacy and beauty” of his work would look especially fine displayed proudly on mantels and center tables, and offered to “make to order, upon the shortest notice, all articles in his line that any one may desire.”

Show highlights

Owen boasted that he could create “any article which fancy dictates,” including “balloons, baskets, flowers, flower vases, fountains, cupids, chariots, candlesticks, cradles, ships, smoking pipes, cigar tubes, birds of paradise,” and many other delights too numerous to mention. He did so, according to the broadside, without “tools, patterns, or molds.” He also made a number of objects for the more scientifically-minded, including thermometers, water hammers, pulse glasses, and cryophoruses.

Like many other glassworkers, Owen spun glass during his demonstrations (note the spinning wheel he is operating in the illustration above). He claimed to be able to spin 300 yards of glass fibers per minute.2

Reviews

Here are several reviews of Owen’s exhibition as printed on the broadside:

The Public Ledger in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, proclaimed: “A Rope of Sand. – The impossibility accomplished! If any one doubt it let him go to Barnum’s Museum and see Mr. Owen spin a thread of glass at the rate of more than 300 yards per minute. A sight of his work alone, to say nothing of the other novelties and curiosities, is worth the price of admission.”

The Daily News in Trenton, New Jersey, stated: “Mr. Owen, the Glass-blower, who has been with us some three weeks, during which time he has filled our city with curiosities, left us yesterday for Bordentown. Mr. Owen is a worthy, industrious man, and has made many friends during his stay among us. His art is too curious to require any commendation from us. He will find plenty of buyers in Bordentown.”

The Republican in Wilmington, Delaware, printed the following: “A Glass Pen. – We have tried one of Mr. Owen’s Glass Pens, and find that it writes very well. Those who wish to try on, have only to go to the Wilson Building, where they may not only secure one, but be entertained by a view of the mode of their manufacture, which is worth more than the price of admission.”

High praise indeed!

Following the trail of Lawrence Finn

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handbill describing Finn's show

Exhibition of Fancy Glass Working and Spinning United States Hotel, Private Entrance : Mr. Finn. Augusta, Georgia: 1840-1843. CMGL 164968.

Lawrence Finn never stayed in one place for too long. Like many itinerant glassworkers, he was always on the move, traveling across the country to find new audiences. We don’t know much about his life, but let’s take the few clues we have and see if we can find Finn.

Where in the world is Lawrence Finn?

Tracking the path of someone who lived almost 200 years ago can be tricky. Today some people leave a minute-by-minute trail of their lives, but a traveling demonstrator like Lawrence Finn left few lasting records in his wake. Luckily, the job that kept Finn on the road also gives us an advantage when looking for him. When he set up shop in a new location he needed to attract customers, and Finn did so by advertising in the local newspapers and distributing handbills and broadsides. Sometimes the same newspapers would review his show. This paper trail gives us a fairly accurate idea of his travels.

Trail of evidence

Finn was British, and based on advertisements and historical data we can connect him to another Lawrence Finn, likely his father or uncle. This older Finn performed in London, England, before and during the time the younger Finn traveled around the United States. Therefore when both are in the United Kingdom, it can be difficult to determine which Finn was responsible for certain advertisements.

handbill describing one of the Finn's London shows

Finn’s Fancy Glass-Working Exhibition. London: 1815. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 112199.

Based on passenger logs and newspaper advertisements, we know the younger Finn likely arrived in New York, New York, from London in October 1827 and rented rooms at 202 Broadway. He opened his exhibition there on Monday, November 12, 1827. At the time, he was perhaps the second itinerant glassworker to perform in the United States.1

newspaper ad

This is the first advertisement Finn placed in the newspaper upon arriving in New York City. Source: New York Historic Newspapers

This first show featured Finn exhibiting his “most curious and pleasing experiments of Fancy Glass Working, Spinning, and Blowing,” and making “articles of the most fanciful description,” including “ships, figures, quadrupeds, birds, flower vases, &c. &c. &c.”2 He worked from 11am to 3pm, and again between 6pm and 10pm. Potential audience members could buy tickets for 25 cents ($6.40 in today’s dollars); children were half price. Finn especially encouraged “heads of families and guardians” to attend his demonstrations.

Other itinerant glassworkers often visited smaller cities and towns, but, based on the surviving advertisements, Finn’s strategy was to stay in large cities near tourist destinations. His New York address, 202 Broadway, was located across the street from St. Paul’s Chapel and down the street from New York City Hall,  Peale’s Museum, and Scudder’s American Museum (later P. T. Barnum’s American Museum).3

Exhibition of Fancy Glass Working No. 202, Broadway : Mr. Finn. New York: J. Booth & Sons, 1828. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 163865.
Fancy Glass Working in Miniature, from London. New York: New York American, 1828. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 165045.

At the beginning of 1829, Finn closed his exhibition at 202 Broadway and spent the next few months demonstrating in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In D.C., he was located near the National Mall on Pennsylvania Avenue — close to where the FBI and Department of Justice buildings are today. He extended his stay in the city due to bad weather, but eventually traveled to Philadelphia, where he set up his show in the Masonic Hall. There, a local newspaper praised Finn’s demonstrations as “highly deserving of patronage,” writing that “few persons will attend the [exhibition] without being much gratified.”4

After a few years, Finn moved to Boston, Massachusetts, and opened his exhibition to a new audience. He was situated near the Old South Meeting House, the Old State House, King’s Chapel, and Benjamin Franklin’s birthplace. A handbill for the show proclaims, “The process of Modeling Figures and Animals from the glass, in a state of Fusion, is so wonderfully curious, as to strike the beholder with astonishment – and must be witnessed, to decide on its merits, as no description can convey an adequate idea of the pleasure it affords.”5

Exhibition of the Art of Fancy Glass Working in Miniature, from London! Boston: C. S. D. & B. F. Griffin, 1831. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 163302.
Finn advertised in several newspapers, including the Boston Post. Source: Newspapers.com

Finn didn’t stay in Boston for long. By the beginning of 1832, he had traveled far south and was demonstrating lampworking above a jewelry store at 115 Chartres Street in New Orleans, Louisiana. Once again it seems he chose his location carefully, renting space in the French Quarter. The price of admission for his show had doubled to 50 cents, and he made additional revenue by selling figurines and ornaments “well adapted for relatives or friends.”6

Finn demonstrated in four New Orleans locations, including this room over a jewelry store. Source: Google News

Over the next decade, Finn revisited many of these cities. He traveled back to New York and Washington, D.C., then Boston, and finally New Orleans. He may have stopped in other cities in between, like Augusta, Georgia, but sometimes his trail dries up for a year or two. Even with all the information we have, Finn’s life and location is still a mystery at times.

Mr. Finn also worked at Scudder’s American Museum (later owned by P. T. Barnum) in New York City. Source: New York Historic Newspapers
Finn advertised in The Times Picayune whenever he demonstrated in New Orleans. Source: Newspapers.com

Mapping Finn’s route

Examining individual advertisements, reviews, or travel records provides insight into Finn’s life, but arranging multiple documents chronologically and mapping his movements gives us an even better idea of how he spent his time in the United States.

Finn visited New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, and New Orleans repeatedly, and traveled mostly along the East Coast. Among the cities he visited from the late 1820s through the early 1840s, those mentioned above (excluding Washington, D.C., and including Philadelphia) were among the top five most populous cities of the United States. Only Baltimore, Maryland – at the time, the second largest city in the country – is missing from Finn’s itinerary, although it is entirely likely he demonstrated there, given his travel habits and exhibitions in nearby Washington, D.C. By choosing these major cities as tour stops, Finn exposed his show to hundreds of thousands of people, thereby increasing his potential revenue and popularity. The fact that he was employed by Rubens Peale and John Scudder, Jr., (both owners of successful New York City museums) speaks to his success.

Explore Lawrence Finn’s path from London to New York and beyond using this map.

A version of this post was originally published on the Corning Museum of Glass blog on June 13, 2017.

John Tilley’s wonderful mechanisms

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To be seen in a neat Sitting Room, at 141 Broadway: the wonderful mechanisms of fancy glass blower John Tilley. This early American broadside, ca. 1820, enumerates the delights New Yorkers could observe if they paid the 25-cent admission fee to Tilley’s glassmaking and scientific exhibition.

handbill describing the show of John Tilley

Wonderful Mechanism J. Tilley, Fancy Glass Blower, from London. New York: J. Robinson, 1820. Collection of the Rakow Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 163866.

John Tilley, originally from London, was the first known itinerant glassworker to bring his exhibition to the United States.1 Eighteenth-century Americans, influenced by their Puritan backgrounds, often shunned traveling entertainers and educators of any sort, some going so far as to outlaw circuses, traveling menageries, and acting troupes. Once those restrictions were lifted, Tilley and others found success touring cities along the East Coast.

Location

Tilley may have been the first glassworker to demonstrate in New York City, but he certainly wasn’t the last to make the city, and specifically Broadway, his home. Later artisans such as Lawrence Finn, W. Belzoni Davidson, and the Woodroffe brothers set up exhibitions in rented rooms and at museums including Barnum’s American Museum at the intersection of Broadway and Ann Street. Like it is today, the street was a center for entertainment.

Possible location of Tilley’s show circled on Broadway, New York, NY, 1821. Source: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division https://www.loc.gov/item/2006629796/
141 Broadway Street, New York, NY, 2019. Source: Google Maps

Even in 1820, New York City (then confined to Manhattan) was bustling. The city’s population had grown to more than 123,000 people, close to 30,000 more than just a decade before.2 William Cobbett, a British farmer, journalist, and politician who lived on a Long Island farm from 1817 until 1819, described the city as resembling “an English town, in point of manners and customs, much more than any other place that I have seen in America.”3 He comments on the low prices and high quality of everything from the food to the household furnishings available to residents.

On women’s fashions, he states, “The most gay promenades in and about London, and even the boxes of our licenced and degraded theatres, are, in point of female dresses, perfect beggary compared with the every day exhibition in the ‘Broad way’ of New York; where the very look of every creature you meet gives evidence of the existence of no taxation without representation.” Based on Cobbet’s description, it is easy to imagine crowds of well-dressed women and men patronizing Tilley’s exhibition.

Show highlights

Like many 19th-century itinerant glassworkers, John Tilley offered his audience a range of enticing entertainments. These included “Spinning and Reeling Hot Glass round a Wheel, with the astonishing velocity of a Mile in less than two minutes” and “Blowing Glass to different degrees of thinness and forming it into various Articles, such as Writing Pens, Smelling Bottles, &c. &c.”

In addition, Tilley explained scientific properties and principles using glass models such as a Cartesian diver and a “Hydro Pneumatic Fountain.” One curious demonstration involved Tilley blowing a “small Globe,” which he said would form “nearly” a vacuum and would fall to the floor “with apparent great weight.”

While John Tilley’s exhibition was “to be seen for a few Days only,” records of his shows and innovations are still available more than two centuries later.

A version of this post was originally published on the Corning Museum of Glass blog on December 19, 2016.

How it works: Cartesian diver experiment

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What is a Cartesian diver?

cartesian diver illustrated

Source: Elementary Treatise on Natural Philosophy Part I, A. Privat Deschanel, 1872, p. 108

A Cartesian diver is an experiment used to demonstrate the relationship between density and buoyancy.

Density describes how much matter is in a certain volume. Imagine filling two measuring cups, one with vegetable oil and the other with water. Now imagine placing those cups on a kitchen scale. You would find that one cup of vegetable oil has a mass of 223 grams and one cup of water has a mass of 240 grams. Vegetable oil has less matter in one cup than water, so vegetable oil is less dense than water.

Buoyancy is the ability of an object to float in water. If you poured the vegetable oil and water into the same container, the vegetable oil would be buoyant and float on the water.

You can change the density and buoyancy of a Cartesian diver at will, making it float or sink (hence Cartesian “diver”).

Cartesian divers are thought to be named for René Descartes. You may know them by another name, such as Cartesian devils, water devils, water dancers, or bottle imps. A Cartesian diver is made up of several parts: a bottle or vessel filled with water, a lid or an air-tight membrane, and a “diver” (often a piece of a straw or a flameworked glass object).

How does it work?

gif of glass cartesian diver in use

On the table in front of you sits a Cartesian diver. The diver is floating because it is less dense than the water. If you apply pressure to the vessel, the gas within the diver is compressed, and the diver’s density increases to the point that is no longer able to float in the water. Thus, the diver lives up to its name and sinks to the bottom. However, if you release the pressure, the gas expands to its original volume and the Cartesian diver becomes a Cartesian floater!

How did itinerant glassworkers use Cartesian divers?

Today, you might make a Cartesian diver in science class, but for hundreds of years they were made and used by itinerant glassworkers. These artisans made all sorts of models and contraptions to entertain their audiences, including Cartesian divers.

handbill with text and two images of glassworkers blowing glass and using a cartesian diver

Dieser Hollaendische porcellain-glass-blaser, 1670? Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 112252.

One of the earliest known records of these glassworkers is an advertisement for a demonstration in Poland circa 1670. On the right-hand side of the handbill, a Dutch glassworker is using a Cartesian diver with three figures, or “divers,” inside. Based on the description below the image, the glassworker promoted the experiment as a magic trick rather than a science experiment. He claimed he could command each figure to move up or down in four different languages and the figure would obey.

Cartesian divers remained a popular part of itinerant glassworkers’ shows, whether billed as magic or science. During the 1800s, many middle-class Americans wanted to be educated while they were entertained, and went to scientific demonstrations, lectures, and museum exhibitions in droves. Glassworkers accordingly included a growing number of experiments and lectures in their shows, and Cartesian divers were often shown alongside pulse glass circulators, philosopher’s hammers, cryophorus deception glasses, and hydro-pneumatic fountains.

a black and white photo with a man in a white coat and beret seated and flameworking at a table. on the table are a cartesian diver, a glass steam engine, and several other small models

John T. Backman Flameworking Glass Ship, McCroskey Studio, 1930s. Collection of the Rakow Research Library, The Corning Museum of Glass, CMGL 152150.

Itinerant glassworkers continued to perform into the 1900s, but the advent of mass entertainment drew audiences away from itinerant performers of all types. Glassworkers looked for alternative options, like starting their own stationary tourist attractions or joining a circus as a side show. Cartesian divers remained popular elements of their demonstrations.

How do you make a Cartesian diver?

gif demonstrating how a diy cartesian diver worksYou can make your own Cartesian diver with things you probably already have around the house and these step-by-step instructions.

This post was co-written by Kathryn Wieczorek; both Cartesian diver gifs are provided by her. A version of this post was originally published on the Corning Museum of Glass blog on April 4, 2017.

See Woodroffe’s glass blowers for a short time only

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Science, art, skill, and beauty! All were on display in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in April 1880. Woodroffe’s Original Bohemian Glass Blowers enticed potential customers inside with a window display of glass objects then dazzled them with lampworking demonstrations and their working glass steam engine, Fairy Queen.

Newspaper ad for woodroffe troupe in harrisburgh, pennsylvania

April 14, 1880 advertisement for Woodroffe’s Original Bohemian Glass Blowers in the Harrisburg Telegraph. Source: Newspapers.com

The Woodroffe brothers – George, Charles, and William – had a major impact on the itinerant glassworker trade. Among other things, they were some of the first to travel with troupes of glassworkers rather than alone or in pairs. Their many groups traveled around the United States and the world during the 50+ years they were active, making them some of the best-known glassworkers of the period. This particular troupe was led by William Woodroffe, the youngest brother.

Location

Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, was dominated by the steel and railroad industries in the late 19th century. In 1880, census takers recorded more than 30,000 people living in the city.1 Woodroffe and his troupe set up their lampworking exhibition near the Susquehanna River at 109 Market Street, in a building previously used by Patterson’s Carpet Store. Today, the spot holds Dauphin County buildings, but 140 years ago it was close to the intersection of two street cars – likely a location where many people came and went.

Possible location of Woodroffe’s show highlighted on Market Street, Harrisburg, PA, 1880. Source: Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division https://www.loc.gov/item/2011593701/
109 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA, 2019. Source: Google Maps

After they closed their exhibition in mid-April, they traveled to Lebanon, Pennsylvania, and then on to Reading, Pennsylvania.

Featured glassworkers

Aside from Woodroffe himself and agent Clarence King, it is unclear who was in the group at this time. Based on contemporary advertisements, possible members include Edwin Hopkins and Will Brown.

Show highlights

For 15 cents, spectators received an “elegant present” and the chance to see Woodroffe’s troupe in action. Once again, the advertisement is short on details, but articles about the troupe from the period provide some insights. An article in The Daily Union-Leader describes watching a troupe member “twist, blow, contract, expand, and otherwise put [glass] into ingenious shape.”2 Another article from the Harrisburg Telegraph states, “The wonderful manner in which these skilled glass blowers can manipulate the brittle substance is well worth a visit to see.”3

Of course, a major draw would have likely been the glass steam engine, Fairy Queen. The troupe claimed this engine was the largest steam-powered glass model in existence, and that it had been on display at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Woodroffe brothers did have at least three steam engines on display at that particular world’s fair, although surviving advertisements identify those models as the Crystal Gem, the Australasia, and Excelsior. It is possible they added the Fairy Queen at a later date, although – considering that any number of other troupes claimed the same history for their glass engines – it is equally possible that Woodroffe’s troupe is stretching the truth to bolster interest in their show.

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