Early Washers Rough on Clothes
Housework in the 19th century meant cleaning, cooking, sewing and doing the laundry. If a woman could afford it, the washing and ironing were sent out, or hired help did it at home. The wash for a family of four cost about $2.
If the laundry was a household chore, it was usually done on Monday. Clothes were sorted, rinsed, rubbed in soapy water on a washboard and then placed in a second tub of water that was heated on the stove. The tub was covered and, after soap was added, the water was boiled for 30 minutes. The clothes were then drained, rinsed in clean water and bluing, wrung out by hand and hung to dry.
The washing machine was invented after the Civil War, but it was not popular with many housewives. The washers tore clothes, left rust spots and leaked. A washing machine cost about $5 in 1902.
By 1910, the washer-wringer combination was larger and was desired in many homes. Once the laundry was finished and hung to dry, all that remained was the Tuesday chore of ironing.
Collectors pay $100 to $500 for a good wooden washing machine from the early 1900s. But beware, the wood may dry if the washer is put in a modern home with central heating. The wood will shrink, and the tub may fall apart.
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Question: I have a large horse figurine made of amber. It looks black, but when held up to light, it has a deep red glow. Would direct sunlight harm it?
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Answer: Amber is the fossilized resin of a pine tree. Experts say it should not be displayed in direct sunlight. The heat generated by the sunlight can melt its surface. Indirect sunlight or artificial lighting will bring out the red glow without hurting the amber. Don’t set it near heat vents, don’t clean it with strong chemicals and don’t put too much pressure on it. Clean amber using cotton balls dampened with warm water and a mild detergent. Rinse with dampened cotton balls and dry immediately with a soft cloth. Polish it with a chamois.
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Q I have a piece of pottery marked “A. Coors, Golden, Colo.” Someone told me the famous Coors Brewing Co. made pottery and used this mark. I also have three pieces of dinnerware marked “Coorsite.”
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A Adolph Coors established the Coors Brewing Co. in Golden, Colo., in 1873. In 1921, Herold China and Pottery Co., founded in Golden in 1910, became Coors Porcelain Co., a subsidiary of the brewing company. Coors Porcelain concentrated on technical and industrial ceramics, but during the Depression it produced some dinnerware and art pottery. Most of the marks on the company’s pottery and porcelain dishes included the word “Coors.” Your dinnerware marked “Coorsite” was made by H.F. Coors Co. of Inglewood. Herman F. Coors, Adolph’s brother, founded the company in 1925. It has made a wide variety of ceramic products. The California company is not related to the Coors Brewing Co. nor to the Coors Porcelain Co.
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Q We recently purchased an unusual grandfather clock. Instead of a picture of the moon above the clock dial, there is a ball that turns on an axis. The only information we have is that it was made in 1917-18 by Samuel Wadsworth. Can you help?
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A Samuel Wadsworth was born in 1846 and worked as a clockmaker in Keene, N.H. He made battery clocks as well as traditional grandfather clocks. Wadsworth died in 1931.
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Q My 7-inch light aqua glass bottle is embossed with the words “Dr. Kilmer’s Swamp Root, Kidney, Liver & Bladder Cure” inside a kidney-shaped design. Other words on the bottle are “Dr. Kilmer & Co., The Great Specific, Binghamton, N.Y.” What did the bottle actually hold? When was it on the market? Is it valuable?
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A Your “cure” bottle dates from the 1890s. Unlike many concoctions of the patent-medicine era (before the Federal Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906), the Dr. Kilmer brand of cures did not contain cocaine, opium or morphine. The Swamp-Root cure contained unfamiliar herbs, including buchu leaves, oil of juniper, oil of birch, Colombo root, swamp-sassafras, balsam copaiba, balsam tolu, skullcap leaves, Venice turpentine, valerian root, rhubarb root, mandrake root, peppermint herb, aloes, cinnamon, sugar and about 10% alcohol.
There really was a Dr. Kilmer. His full name was Sylvester Andral Kilmer. He set up a homeopathic medical practice in Binghamton, N.Y., in the 1870s. In 1892, his brother, Jonas, who helped run the business end of the practice, bought out his brother’s proprietary medicine business. Jonas’ son, Willis Sharpe Kilmer, was the advertising promoter behind the success of the Dr. Kilmer brand name. There is still a large supply of bottles like yours, so it is worth only $10 to $20.
For a listing of helpful books and publications, send a self-addressed, stamped (55 cents) envelope to Kovels, Los Angeles Times, King Features Syndicate, 235 E. 45th St., New York, NY 10017.
Current Prices
Current prices are recorded from antique shows, flea markets, sales and auctions throughout the United States. Prices vary in different locations because of local economic conditions.
* Orphan Annie celluloid pin-back button, image of Annie, “Orphan Annie Loves Red Cross Macaroni,” Parisan Novelty Co., Chicago, 1 1/4 inches, $55.
* 1939 New York World’s Fair Mr. Peanut nut set, metal, Mr. Peanut standing next to Trylon and Perisphere, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., label, 6-inch bowl and four small bowls, $125.
* C.M. Mossman & Brother catalog for horse owners, circa 1890s, 304 illustrated pages, seven full-color, 15 by 11 1/2 inches, $145.
* Dick Van Dyke coloring book, by Artcraft, Dick, Laura and Richie on cover, 1963, $200.
* Hubley fireside cat doorstop, original gray and white paint, cast iron, $270.
* Dedham pottery elephant ashtray with slots for cigarettes, 3 3/4 inches, $410.
* Cranberry bell, hobnail glass, applied ring, ruffled, Boston & Sandwich, 1880, 5 inches, $550.
* Ideal Toni doll, hard plastic, blue sleep eyes, brush lashes, blond wig, child body, circa 1949, 14 inches, $700.
* “Some Like It Hot” movie poster, United Artists, 1959, shows Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, 20 by 29 inches, $1,150.
* Huffy bicycle, Yellow Submarine, yellow, women’s, seat designed with printed submarine material, three-speed, 1960s, $2,585.
