This exhibition showcased from June 15, 2022 to May 15, 2023. YouTube video of the exhibition – Pember’s Attic video

The Pember’s Attic is a collection of items found in the attics of the Pember’s home & in the Museum’s. We were contacted in October of 2020 by Pember House Restorations LLC regarding the items. Bernadette Hoffman, the museum’s educator visited the home to review and accept the objects.  She dived into researching each one and it’s origin in an attempt to connect it to the Pembers.

The Story behind the items… The photographs were the most difficult to identify because there are no names written on the back. The unknown family has writing on the back in pencil but it’s too faint to accurately read. Therefore, they have been unidentified and listed as unknowns.

We received six crate boards addressed to either F.T. Pember or Pember & Prouty. These were somewhat difficult to trace. Through research we found that Pember & Prouty’s business was at 164 and 166 S. 5th Avenue in NY from 1879-1885. However, we don’t know what might have been shipped. It could have been furs since that was the business (#9 & #14 on display).

Crate board #10 labeled “Live Plants” from James Vick, Seedsman of Rochester NY was an exciting find because a handwritten garden list was found in the walls of the house in the 1980’s. This wooden slat was also found in the attic by the P. H. Restorations. There are flowers and vegetables on the garden list which can be found in Vick’s Floral Guide of 1870 (on loan from Bernadette). Specifically, the Murselli Poppy (a garden strain of the Opium Poppy) is listed in the guide but is no longer one that can be purchased today. The date of this crate board is estimated to be between 1873-1882. Pember’s house was built in 1873 and Vicks died in 1882. His sons then changed the name of the company to James Vicks’s Sons.

Crate board #12 is an extraordinary find because research uncovered five sets of eggs in the collection which were either collected by Arthur Price or for him in 1889 and 1891. The backside of the board features a Gray Goose tobacco label by Ligett & Myers (1873-1878). Shipment of these eggs were likely between 1891-1893.

 

There is a Stanley level “patented Feb 1890” with the initials “F” and  “T” carved in the side. Although the F and the T are not facing the same way. No research was needed for this object as it clearly belonged to Franklin.

 

 

 

The apothecary jar labeled “Elixir Chionanthus Compound” from the Norwich Pharm. Co. founded in 1887 was found in the house attic. This is a homeopathy compound used for liver health, gall bladder and abdominal glandular organs. Franklin’s mother, Maria, lived with them and died in 1892. We were unable to locate a cause of death because the village records were destroyed in a 1940 fire.  Ellen died February 18, 1924, of carcinoma of the breast. Franklin died April 6, 1924, from cancer of the prostate gland. Perhaps one of them used the Chionanthus Compound.

 

 

 

A decorative block of wood of unknown origins was found in the house attic. There’s a wood-burned border design on the front and back with leaves on the top. On the right side is a small symbol or perhaps initials.

 

 

 

 

Among the objects discovered in the attic of Pember’s home was a black wooden chest. Hours of research turned up nothing found exactly to it’s design. The chest might have been Franklin’s or a later occupant. It could have been a carpenter’s or taxidermy chest. It’s clearly missing the top tray as one can see the guides. The handles were replaced because there is a lack of paint in the area.  Previous handles were half moon cups. The trim is stamped aluminum with hook closures. We added props to the chest on exhibit as if it was meant for taxidermy.

Last among the house objects on exhibit is a partially articulated skeleton. At first glance we thought it was a wallaby based on the small size. After research, it was determined to be a juvenile kangaroo. There are many specimens in the museum’s collection which Franklin purchased from Wilhelm Schluter of Halle, Germany, a Natural History dealer. In a supply catalog (1928 copy) located in the museum’s attic storage room it lists a wallaby and red kangaroo on a page titled Skeletal Preparations. The first supply catalog was published in 1868. Perhaps Franklin purchased the bones from Schluter. Holding the partial skeleton together was glue, wire, coated wire and copper tubing. The glue was disintegrating and the front foot fell apart during the move. Much of the skeleton was left as it was found but some changes were made to accommodate the positioning of the legs. Bernadette took on the task of putting the skeleton back together with what bones were present with new glue and wire. She reinforced the old glue and made sure the skeleton was stable. The front feet were arranged in a tray due to the lack of time to assemble them correctly.

Items found in the museum’s attic include  Mercury Glass Shades.  Mercury glass, also known as silvered glass, contains neither mercury nor silver. It’s actually clear glass, mold-blown into double-walled shapes and coated on the inside with a silvering formula, which is inserted through a small hole that is then sealed with a plug. A few manufacturers did, for a time, try to line their glass with a mercury solution; this practice was discontinued due to the expense and toxicity, but helps explain the origin of the misnomer. However, these shades are not double walled but are known as mercury glass x-ray reflector lights which feature a mirrored coating under a top coating of paint. They were produced by the National X-ray Reflector Company of Chicago, IL in the early 1900’s. Later the company changed their name to Curtis Lighting Inc.

 

Radial-waved scallop-pattern glass shade found in the museum’s attic. These shades were used in the museum.

 

 

 

Fluted quilted-pattern glass shade found in the museum’s attic. These shades were used downstairs in the library.

 

 

 

Additionally, a bottled leather snake was found in the museum’s attic in 2017 tucked away in a large (5.5ft x 3.5ft x 2ft) wooden crate. The smell of the snake was permeating thru the cork and wax seal. Staff added more wax along with a temporary aluminum cap to prevent any further odors escaping. The snake was collected by Pember in Palm Beach, FL. Date unknown.

 

 

 

 

 

THE EXHIBIT – Pember’s Attic Video