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Sarah Morton

by | People, Photo of the Month

Sarah Morton, Fayetteville, circa 1910. According to the 1910 census, Sarah Morton was born in 1855 in Tennessee. Her occupation in 1910 is listed as “washing” for “private families.” Her husband, Alfred Morton, also a Tennessee native, was born in 1850. His occupation is listed as “odd jobs.” Also in the Martin household in 1910 was their 14-year-old grandson, Leslie Howard.

Washington County Historical Society Collection (P-4602)

Photo of the Month Archive

Sarah Morton, Fayetteville, circa 1910. According to the 1910 census, Sarah Morton was born in 1855 in Tennessee. Her occupation in 1910 is listed as “washing” for “private families.” Her husband, Alfred Morton, also a Tennessee native, was born in 1850. His occupation is listed as “odd jobs.” Also in the Martin household in 1910 was their 14-year-old grandson, Leslie Howard.

Washington County Historical Society Collection (P-4602)

Photo of the Month Archive

Bear Brand Teddy Bear

by | Artifact of the Month, Business and Occupations, Toys

Bear Brand Hosiery teddy bear, circa 1970sDonated by David Quin

This teddy bear was a marketing item for Bear Brand Hosiery Company. Founded in Chicago in 1893 as Paramount Knitting Company, the name was changed to Bear Brand in 1922. At first the company specialized in factory-made fleece-lined men’s socks, later branching out to include stockings for women and casual socks for the whole family.

In 1951, Bear Brand Hosiery opened a factory in south Fayetteville (the present-day location of the Arkansas Research and Technology Park on Cato Springs Road). According to an article in the Northwest Arkansas Times (April 10, 1951), the new plant boasted 280 knitting machines, “hundreds of windows which afford proper lighting,” a special ventilation system, and an employee cafeteria. The knitting machines were to be run on a double shift, yielding an output of 2500 pairs of socks per day. At its full operation, Bear Brand anticipated putting 150 local people to work. 

Bear Brand also opened a plant in Siloam Springs in 1951, followed by factories in Bentonville in 1962 and Rogers in 1968. The 1960s saw Bear Brand’s focus shift to production of women’s pantyhose, making Northwest Arkansas a leader in the pantyhose industry. In 1970, Fayetteville hosted Bear Brand’s annual national sales meeting. Held at the Holiday Inn, the convention featured a “psychadelic, choreographed fashion show” which stressed the “hosiery needs of the liberated woman.” New hosiery styles shown included “those for the woman with a generous figure, thigh-high styles for future fashion in longuette (mid-length) dresses, an over-the-calf style for wearing with pants suits, styles for the young or early teen petite figure, and a nude pantyhose with only the waistband unconcealed.” (Northwest Arkansas Times, June 3, 1970)

The Siloam Springs Bear Brand factory closed in 1975 and the Rogers plant in 1976, with the Bentonville and Fayetteville operations soon to follow.

Artifact of the Month Archive

Donated by David Quin

This teddy bear was a marketing item for Bear Brand Hosiery Company. Founded in Chicago in 1893 as Paramount Knitting Company, the name was changed to Bear Brand in 1922. At first the company specialized in factory-made fleece-lined men’s socks, later branching out to include stockings for women and casual socks for the whole family.

In 1951, Bear Brand Hosiery opened a factory in south Fayetteville (the present-day location of the Arkansas Research and Technology Park on Cato Springs Road). According to an article in the Northwest Arkansas Times (April 10, 1951), the new plant boasted 280 knitting machines, “hundreds of windows which afford proper lighting,” a special ventilation system, and an employee cafeteria. The knitting machines were to be run on a double shift, yielding an output of 2500 pairs of socks per day. At its full operation, Bear Brand anticipated putting 150 local people to work. 

Bear Brand also opened a plant in Siloam Springs in 1951, followed by factories in Bentonville in 1962 and Rogers in 1968. The 1960s saw Bear Brand’s focus shift to production of women’s pantyhose, making Northwest Arkansas a leader in the pantyhose industry. In 1970, Fayetteville hosted Bear Brand’s annual national sales meeting. Held at the Holiday Inn, the convention featured a “psychadelic, choreographed fashion show” which stressed the “hosiery needs of the liberated woman.” New hosiery styles shown included “those for the woman with a generous figure, thigh-high styles for future fashion in longuette (mid-length) dresses, an over-the-calf style for wearing with pants suits, styles for the young or early teen petite figure, and a nude pantyhose with only the waistband unconcealed.” (Northwest Arkansas Times, June 3, 1970)

The Siloam Springs Bear Brand factory closed in 1975 and the Rogers plant in 1976, with the Bentonville and Fayetteville operations soon to follow.

Artifact of the Month Archive

World War I Poster

by | Artifact of the Month, Military and Homefront

World War I poster from FranceDonated by Lonnie Walker

The 1918 World War I poster from France was discovered in a trunk in an old hotel in Eureka Springs (Carroll County). The trunk, which contained posters, army manuals, maps, and letters, had belonged to 1st Lt. John Harold Lawson (1897-1966), who served with the Illinois 123rd Field Artillery 33rd Division during World War I. Following the war,Lawson returned to his hometown of Kewanee, Illinois, where he lived with his mother while attending college. From 1938 to 1960 he and his wife, Leora, lived in Topeka, Kansas, where he worked as an accountant for Kansas Power and Light Company. Both John and Leora Lawson are buried in the Eureka Springs Cemetery.

The “Union of French Associations Against Enemy Propaganda” commissioned French artist Maurice Neumont to create the artwork. Neumont depicts a soldier wearing a gas mask standing on a war-torn field. Behind him in a cloud of smoke is the phrase, “They Shall Not Pass! 1914–1918.” At the bottom of the poster is a message from the soldier, who is speaking to French civilians. It reads,

Twice I have held and won on the Marne,
Civilian, my brother,
The underhanded offensive of the “white peace” will assault you in your turn,
Like me, you must hold and win, be strong and shrewd,
Beware of German hypocrisy.

The soldier refers to two battles that were waged along the Marne River in France; both were Allied victories over the German armies. “White Peace” is a term used to describe a settlement where nations agree to cease fighting, with no annexations or reparations exchanged. The implyed message of the poster is that, for France, true peace can only come with victory.

Artifact of the Month Archive

Donated by Lonnie Walker

The 1918 World War I poster from France was discovered in a trunk in an old hotel in Eureka Springs (Carroll County). The trunk, which contained posters, army manuals, maps, and letters, had belonged to 1st Lt. John Harold Lawson (1897-1966), who served with the Illinois 123rd Field Artillery 33rd Division during World War I. Following the war,Lawson returned to his hometown of Kewanee, Illinois, where he lived with his mother while attending college. From 1938 to 1960 he and his wife, Leora, lived in Topeka, Kansas, where he worked as an accountant for Kansas Power and Light Company. Both John and Leora Lawson are buried in the Eureka Springs Cemetery.

The “Union of French Associations Against Enemy Propaganda” commissioned French artist Maurice Neumont to create the artwork. Neumont depicts a soldier wearing a gas mask standing on a war-torn field. Behind him in a cloud of smoke is the phrase, “They Shall Not Pass! 1914–1918.” At the bottom of the poster is a message from the soldier, who is speaking to French civilians. It reads,

Twice I have held and won on the Marne,
Civilian, my brother,
The underhanded offensive of the “white peace” will assault you in your turn,
Like me, you must hold and win, be strong and shrewd,
Beware of German hypocrisy.

The soldier refers to two battles that were waged along the Marne River in France; both were Allied victories over the German armies. “White Peace” is a term used to describe a settlement where nations agree to cease fighting, with no annexations or reparations exchanged. The implyed message of the poster is that, for France, true peace can only come with victory.

Artifact of the Month Archive

Stokenbury Home

by | Photo of the Month, Residences

Stokenbury home, Elkins (Washington County), circa 1898. Robert Henry Stokenbury and Lydia Johnson Stokenbury stand with their children (from left) Herman, Robbie, and Jessie. The women behind the fence are unidentified.

Roberta Reed Collection (S-2001-27-3)

Photo of the Month Archive

Stokenbury home, Elkins (Washington County), circa 1898. Robert Henry Stokenbury and Lydia Johnson Stokenbury stand with their children (from left) Herman, Robbie, and Jessie. The women behind the fence are unidentified.

Roberta Reed Collection (S-2001-27-3)

Photo of the Month Archive

Powwow Souvenir

by | Artifact of the Month, Clothing and Accessories

1907 powwow souvenirIn October 1907, Collinsville, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), was the site of an event billed as “the last great powwow before [Oklahoma] statehood.” Hosted by Shawnee chief Henry Spybuck, tribal members from throughout Oklahoma came to participate in traditional ceremonies. The attendance of Geronimo, chief of the Apaches, was fuel for much newspaper fodder, as he was being held as a prisoner of war at Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma. According to the Indian Republicannewspaper (Tulsa, Oklahoma), the U.S. government granted Geronimo and other Apache Indians living on Fort Sill’s “military reservation” permission to travel to the powwow, under escort of armed soldiers. Other chiefs at the powwow included Cherokee chief William Charles Rogers,  Osage chief O lo co wah la, Comanche chief Quanah Parker, and Kiowa chief Lone Wolf.

This souvenir badge from the 1907 powwow is part of the Shiloh Museum’s William Guy Howard Collection. Howard (1876-1965) moved to Northwest Arkansas from Nebraska as a young boy. He had a lifetime of public service in Springdale as city attorney during World War I, mayor during World War II, and municipal judge in the 1950s. To many local folks, Howard was known simply as “the Judge.” He was also a collector of prehistoric and Native American artifacts, which he displayed floor-to-ceiling in his home. In 1966 the Springdale City Council voted to purchase Howard’s massive collection of some 10,000 prehistoric and historic artifacts and 260 books and pamphlets on anthropology and archeology. This was the founding collection of the Shiloh Museum.

Artifact of the Month Archive

In October 1907, Collinsville, Indian Territory (now Oklahoma), was the site of an event billed as “the last great powwow before [Oklahoma] statehood.” Hosted by Shawnee chief Henry Spybuck, tribal members from throughout Oklahoma came to participate in traditional ceremonies. The attendance of Geronimo, chief of the Apaches, was fuel for much newspaper fodder, as he was being held as a prisoner of war at Fort Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma. According to the Indian Republican newspaper (Tulsa, Oklahoma), the U.S. government granted Geronimo and other Apache Indians living on Fort Sill’s “military reservation” permission to travel to the powwow, under escort of armed soldiers. Other chiefs at the powwow included Cherokee chief William Charles Rogers,  Osage chief O lo co wah la, Comanche chief Quanah Parker, and Kiowa chief Lone Wolf.

This souvenir badge from the 1907 powwow is part of the Shiloh Museum’s William Guy Howard Collection. Howard (1876-1965) moved to Northwest Arkansas from Nebraska as a young boy. He had a lifetime of public service in Springdale as city attorney during World War I, mayor during World War II, and municipal judge in the 1950s. To many local folks, Howard was known simply as “the Judge.” He was also a collector of prehistoric and Native American artifacts, which he displayed floor-to-ceiling in his home. In 1966 the Springdale City Council voted to purchase Howard’s massive collection of some 10,000 prehistoric and historic artifacts and 260 books and pamphlets on anthropology and archeology. This was the founding collection of the Shiloh Museum.

Artifact of the Month Archive