RAMble, the University Libraries' blog

For Museum Day, I decided to research Special Collection's Museum Collection. This collection includes many archeological artifacts, but we have little or no information on where they were collected, by whom, or under what circumstances.

The original core of the collection was from the Chester County Cabinet of the Natural Sciences, Chester County’s first natural sciences museum. So I started with what material we have about the Cabinet. However, I discovered that its contents only pertain to the herbariums and botanical specimens contributed to the Cabinet, rather than artifacts I'm researching.

Then I went to the student newspapers. Full-text searching the student newspapers is often a great way to pinpoint relevant information. In this case, unfortunately, the papers reported on so many student trips to other museums that I couldn’t pick out information about West Chester’s own museum.

In the course catalogs, I began finding scraps of information. Starting in 1879-1880, the museum collection was located in the Main Building in an addition that had been built in 1878-1879. When the Old Library was built in 1902, the collection was moved to its second floor. The mineral collection of the late Alfred Sharples was donated by his son F. F. Sharples in 1904-1905, and it seems that J. Preston Thomas’s collection of animal heads, horn, and Native American artifacts was made in 1906-1907. In 1909-910, over fifty Roman and Etruscan ceramic artifacts were donated by Dr. Edwin Barber, Director of the Pennsylvania Museum, and a collection of taxidermy birds and bird eggs, made by the late Frank Darlington, was added in 1915.

It seems that the attention and care given to the museum may have waned in the late 1920s. The museum was always given a paragraph description the course catalog up until 1927-1928, and in 1938-1939, it stops being mentioned at all. What does this mean? In 1939, the Old Library was renovated and perhaps the perennial problem of space in libraries led to the relocation or dissolution of the museum. Or maybe the staff responsible for the course catalog just decided not to devote space to the museum anymore. It’s hard to tell if the change in the course catalog provides anything meaningful.

We have an inventory of the museum collection from 1946. Esther Wolfe, who was probably a West Chester student, created an “Accession List of Recataloged Items” which consists of an inventory of a large number of Native American artifacts, as well as European Neolithic artifacts, some ancient Greek pottery, and random items ranging from a Turkish comb to Chilean spurs. In total, there are 684 items listed, according to the count at the end of the accession list. An inventory of the museum collection completed in 2012, however, consists of about 300 items. Wolfe notes at the end of the accession list that there is a card catalog for the collection “in Museum,” an indexed clipping file, and a collection of school loan articles filed in “old Herbarium Cabinets,” and that she also created a report in 1946. There is also a bibliography of books and museums consulted in doing all this work. Clearly, at some point we lost track of both records and artifacts.

Occasionally archival research yields useful information easily and quickly, but very often it doesn’t. I still don’t have any idea where I might find the provenance information I’m looking for, or a full picture of the history of the Museum Collection. Sometimes archival research is like that. 

Images: 

Top right image: Artifact to the left has a label reading "Pottery from Cliff dwelling ruins - 1000-2000 years before Spanish came" (Museum Collection, Box 1, 45-109). Artifact to the right has a label reading "Ancient Pueblo Pitcher 11-1200 A.D." (Museum Collection, Box 1, 45-129). Artifact in the middle is listed in the inventory as "ancient pueblo kettle with incised design" (Museum Collection, Box 1, 45-128). 

Middle image: Artifact to the left has a label reading "2 Handled Cup Greek 5th-4th cent. B.C." (Museum Collection, Box 8, container 3). Artifact to the right has a label reading "Etruscan Buchero Ware 5th-3rd cent. B.C." (Museum Collection, Box 8, container 3). 

Bottom image: Artifact to the left has a label reading "Cochiti Storage Bowl - Note design for four points of world, 1891" (Museum Collection Box 3, not listed in inventory.) 

References

Sturzebecker, Russell L. The Centennial History of West Chester State College. West Chester: Tinicum Press, 1971. 

West Chester University Course Catalog 1879-1880, pg 21. 

West Chester University Course Catalog 1904-1906, pg 41. 

West Chester University Course Catalog 1906-1907, pg 39. 

West Chester Course Catalog 1909-1910, pg 36-39. 

West Chester Course Catalog 1916-1917, pg 44. 

Wolfe, Esther. "Accession List of Recataloged Items." 

“The Art of War: The Rhetoric of Propaganda Posters during World War II” is the title of a new exhibit now on display at F.H.G. Library. Located on the 6^th floor by Special Collections, the exhibit examines the presence and purpose of rhetorical features in World War II propaganda posters.

Created after the declaration of war on the Empire of Japan, the Office of War Information was established by the US government with the purpose of regulating the content and imagery of war messages directed to pub

lic, particularly the production of war propaganda posters. These posters dealt with a variety of themes such as the need to work, the nature of the enemy, and the need to sacrifice. Rhetorically manipulating the viewer through an plea to a distinctly American appeal to pathos and emphasizing the personal agency of a single individual within a worldwide conflict. These posters proved valuable in cultivating patriotic moral. 

On display are a variety of posters reflecting the various themes and rhetorical approaches used to advertise war bonds to the public and promote a work ethic beneficial to the war effort. Visit the exhibit to learn exactly how art was weaponized and used to fight on the Home Front during the Second World War.

The exhibit is open during normal library hours.

The exhibit was created and the blog post was written by Chadd Heller, English Major and Class of 2017.

On January 6, 1941, an aging Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed four fundamental freedoms during his State of the Union address: freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear. By articulating national ideals, Roosevelt hoped to generate support for the allied war effort in Europe. The speech described the president’s idealistic sentiments for the country and thus became known as Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms Speech,” as a result of the iconic nature of these freedoms. The lofty idealism espoused by Roosevelt in his speech would later be mirrored in several paintings done by Norman Rockwell, which attempted to depict each of these four freedoms. Inspired by the patriotic imperative triggered by the involvement of the United States in World War II, Rockwell’s paintings reflect a need to unite in preparation for the upcoming times of strife and struggle. Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Worship, Freedom from Want, and Freedom from Fear were first published in The Saturday Evening Post on February 20, February 27, March 6, and March 13, 1943 respectively, along with commissioned essays from various American writers and historians. The paintings were also distributed to the American public through posters as part of the War Bond Drive, further fueling the proliferation of patriotic sentiments. By giving citizens the opportunity to support the war effort through bonds, the country saw an increase in patriotism and acted as an effective marketing device in summoning support. In addition to this, the paintings were reproduced as postage stamps in 1941, in 1943, in 1946, and in 1994, further exemplifying their ubiquity among the public. West Chester University’s Special Collections owns a poster copy of both Freedom of Speech and Freedom from Fear.

Freedom of Speech was the first painting in the series The Four Freedoms. Rockwell’s paintings, known for their proclivity to idealize American culture and reflect life as Rockwell envisioned it, spoke with a gentle pathos to the American public. Depicted in Freedom of Speech is a local town meeting in which a lone dissenter can be seen speaking up in opposition to the crowd, thereby exhibiting his freedom of speech. The painting is notable for the dramatic angle presented, highlighting the central figure and distinguishing him from the other members of the town. His attire evinces the idyllic reassurance of blue-collar, middle-class sentiments, as opposed to the older and more formally dressed present at the meeting. One could imagine the central figure as inviting the viewer into the scene, as if they are present at the town meeting. The striking quality of the painting emerges from this use of perspective, as Rockwell had just begun using photography in combination with live models and his own idealistic vision. This painting was accompanied with an essay by Booth Tarkington in The Saturday Evening Post.

Freedom from Fear depicts an American family tucking their children into bed as the carnage of the Blitz rages on in Europe. The sentimental values of family and unity can be seen in full rhetorical effect, as it depicts a scenario evoking paternal notions. The care and concern seen in the parents can furthermore be projected onto the United States as a whole. Often described as overly intimate, Rockwell himself expressed a disappointment with this painting, preferring Freedom of Speech and Freedom of Worship as the pinnacle of this series. Freedom from Fear was the only one in the series to be created prior to the commissioning of the series. The painting was published in The Saturday Evening Post with an essay by Stephen Vincent Benét.

Ultimately, Rockwell’s paintings represented the need for tolerance, courtesy, kindness, and political freedoms expressed in Roosevelt’s titular speech. Rockwell’s Four Freedoms paintings appealed to a large audience and were rhetorically successful through his detailed narrative approach. The wholesome and idealized sentiments in these paintings sought to comfort and console a nation during a time of immense strife. A distinctly positive set of paintings, Rockwell was criticized for his elision of misery, such as poverty and other forms of social unrest. Through the influence of these paintings the notions contained in these four freedoms was incorporated into the Atlantic charter, and the charter of the United Nations.

Blog post written by Chadd Heller, Class of 2017.  Chadd is an Intern in Special Collections and an English Major and German Minor.

Marion Farnham was born in Boston, Massachusetts on October 27, 1887 to Charles and Maria Farnham. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from University of Puerto Rico while teaching art classes there. Later she earned a Master of Arts degree from Boston University. She also studied at the Art Student League in New York City, Columbia University, and University of Pennsylvania.

Farnham started teaching art at West Chester University in 1923, and by 1932 she had become Head of the Art Department, a position she held until her retirement. During her years teaching, Farnham was also the art advisor for the school’s yearbook, The Serpentine; her ethereal map of West Chester State Normal School’s campus appeared on the endpaper of the 1930 Serpentine.  She also worked with the school’s theatre department to create the scenery and costumes for many of their plays. She chaperoned many of the school’s dances and events, and even led an art school field trip to notable artist Christian Brinton’s house to study Russian art styles. In addition to her work as a teacher, Farnham was a member of the Eastern Arts Association, the Pennsylvania Educational Association, and the American Federation of Art. She retired in 1952, but was named an Emeriti Professor.

Farnham’s apparent love of travel, along with her passion for studying art, led her to travel all over the world. She visited many art galleries across Europe, including the Mediterranean islands and Greece to focus on Ancient Greek architecture. She also travelled to the Virgin Islands, Canada, Central America, Mexico, Asia, and Northern Africa to study the cultural art there.

After her retirement, Farnham remained in West Chester until her death in March 1983, at the age of 95.

Blog post written by Melissa Mulreany, Class of 2017.  Melissa is an Intern in Special Collections and English Major.