Antique Civil War Era Patented 1858 Hard Paper SHOE BOX Victorian Advertising

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Antique Civil War Era Patented 1858 Hard Paper SHOE BOX Victorian Advertising:
$225.00

AntiqueBox

Dated Label:February 2, 1858: patent on inside of lid: given to “E. (Elisha) Waters” of “Troy,NY” (see pictures for complete text and description from this ingenious inventor)

DESCRIPTION:This antique lidded boxis made primarily from an early cardboard material. The designer and inventor of the box itselfwas Elisha Waters, a doctor and pharmacist from Troy, NY whose successfulexperiments with paper landed him the patent on the inside of the lid. His boxes were so successful that he opened a box company in Troy, NY in 1857.Various merchants purchased his boxes for packaging and shipping their waresduring the latter half of the 19th century. This particular box is covered in green paperprinted with the manufacturer’s name and an illustration of its originalcontents: “H. C. BABCOCK” is printed along the top of one side of the box aswell as on one side of the lid, and a picture of a lady’s boot with the sizerange in the center “6 To 8”. There is asmall sticker on the lower left of this side of the box as well but I cannotdecipher what it says.

CONDITION: Overall this box is quite sturdy and solid(the lid less than the box proper) with the following issues noted & largelydetailed in the photographs: general edge & surface wear, some fading ofthe lithograph (illustration & name) and green color, the lid’s cornersshow some splitting, the muslin tape lining the edges is frayed and shows someloss, one nail has come out from the lid (you can see it in photo #5 and it willbe included in a small bag) and the bottom is loosening from the box proper—it isstill attached and secured, but this can be noticed if one pushes up on thebottom of the box.

NewspaperLining: The bottomof the box is lined in a sheet of newspaper dated 1888, titled “The FiresideCompanion”—it appears to have been a literary publication gearedprimarily towards Victorian women, with fictionalnarratives on matters of the heart as well as various cosmeticadvertisements.

This antiquebox is a fascinating social and industrial artifact. It is most certainly worthy of preservation& study!!

Dimensions:

Boxwith Lid

16.5” x 12.25” x 7” (l x w x h)

Lid alone

16.5” x 12.25” x 1.5” (l x w x h)

Box alone

16 1/8” x 12” x 7” (l x w x h)

Please examine the pictures closely & feel free to email mewith any questions!Thanks for looking!Payment is expected withinthree days of an sale\'s closure.Please inquire about international and expedited shipping rates as well asmultiple orders as I am happy to combine shipping.