Case, Traveling

Object Name:

Case, Traveling

Object ID:

2019.029.01

Creator:

Brooks, D. B. and BrotherInventor

Place of Origin:

Salem, MA

Date:

1864

Description:

Civil War traveling case, owned and used by Martin P. Weston (1838-1865) of Amherst, NH. Black oilcloth cover with cylindrical tin inner canister. Printed paper label inside, with oilcloth backing: "BROOKS PATENT / MILITARY AND TRAVELLING / WRITING, WORK and TOILET CASE, / Weighing but 10 ounces. / Patented January 5, 1864.", with list of contents and other information. Inner oilcloth flap with slots containing steel scissors, ivory-handled toothbrush, toothpick, yarn, thread, and court plaster paper. Black felt sewing flap with needles. Straight pins in paper holder. Eight sheets of paper attached with cotton tape. Printed cotton lining on cover flap and inner flap. Typescript paper label adhered to exterior: "Kit used by Martin Weston / of Amherst, N. H. during / the Civil War. He died at / Fort Munroe of disease."

Material:

Textile
Oilcloth
Cotton
Metal
Tin
Paper

Dimensions:

L-8.8 Dia-2 inches

Provenance:

Owned and used by Martin P. Weston (1838-1865), who was born in Amherst, NH, to Isaac Plumer and Mary Jane (Howard) Weston. He worked on the family farm until encouraged by the offer of a bounty, enlisted for one year of service in the 1st Regiment New Hampshire Volunteer Heavy Artillery on August 30, 1864. The companies of the regiment were ordered to Washington, DC, for the defense of the capital. Detachments were spread between a dozen forts and batteries around the city. Weston fell ill late in 1864 and died of congestion of the lungs at Fort Simmons, Maryland, on January 11, 1865. The donor is the great-great-granddaughter of Caroline F. Weston Temple (1836-1917), who was the elder sister of Martin P. Weston.

D. B. Brooks and Brother (David B. Brooks and Lyman B. Brooks) were booksellers, stationers, and publishers in Salem, MA, who formed a partnership in 1854. They remained at 201 Essex Street, Salem, until 1870, when they moved the business to Boston. D. B. Brooks and Brother patented the "Military and Travelling Writing, Work, and Toilet Case," on January 5, 1864, as part of a line of cases for sale intended for soldiers' use during the Civil War.

Credit Line:

Gift of Nancy E. Kelley

People:

Weston, Martin P. (1838-1865)

Subjects:

Civil War, Toilet (Grooming), Toilet articles, Toiletries