‘(Quester Elizabeth Jessie Bardens founded the Quester organi zation in 1944. Like many other non-profit organizations, the group faces reduced membership due to age and death. New members are needed to continue preserva tion efforts. SoOkctor c loe(K> My name is Barbara. I’m a digitabulist a thimble collector. Thimbles have been one of mankind’s most basic tools. It has many more uses than simply pushing a needle through fabric. After World War I they be came a popular advertising medi um. In the 1930 s and 19405, red topped thimbles caught people’s attention. Early school teachers used “dames thimbles” to enforce dis cipline when she knocked the un ruly student on the top of the head with her thimbled-finger (called thimble knocking). I wonder what would happen if teachers tried that in today’s classroom! The term “thimble knocking” was also used by ladies of the evening they would use a thimble on their finger to knock on the window glass in order to attract male attention. During the 1800 s, a thimble was used as a “spirit measure,” thus the term “only a thimble ful.” During Word War I, thimbles that time, thimbles have been also became a type of currency. It made of every material known to breaks my heart to relay this man...from 14K gold to a real story, but in England 350,000 to carrot! 400,000 sterling thimbles were During the late 16th century to donated and melted down in. , the .early 20th century, thimbles order tabuy.much needed bospi-. . were, valued as objects of .art. Lancaster FjU^mg ?Wsit/m€&sy % tal equipment. In Europe, thimbles are given as confirmation gifts to young la dies as a start for their hope chests. A sandalwood thimble left in the sewing basket will discour age moths. In 1909 an Englishman invent ed the rheumatism thimble it was made of silver, steel, zinc and copper which set up a galvanic reaction on moist fingers. And I’m sure the innovative mind of today can think of many more uses for the ordinary thimble. Do you know the difference be tween an accumulator and a col lector? The accumulator collects for the sheer pleasure of owing an item. The collector, on the other hand, wants to know the who, the what, the where, the why and the how of the item. The simple thimble has its ori gin as a needle pusher in early civilization; crudely made of stone, bronze, bone or ivory, they were used with crude needles to fasten animal skins together, making protective clothing. Since ¥ LOU ANN GOOD Food And Family Features Editor PHILADELPHIA People who share a love for antiques, a desire to learn more about them, and preserve them for future generations can join an organiza tion called The Questers. The Questers, an international organization, was founded in 1944 by Elizabeth Jessie Bardens. The Questers grew to include about 16,000 members in 882 chapters across the U.S. and Canada. Individual chapters vary. The programs focus on the interests of the members. Some groups have speakers who share their knowledge about different as pects pertaining to antiques or history, members take trips to historic sites, antique shows, and tour museums. A quarterly publication is sent to members, and an annual con vention is conducted in the spring at different sites. This year’s annual convention was in Sommerset, N.J. “The Questers of Pennsylvania have contributed dramatically both in time and outright grants to various historic sites and mu seums throughout the state,” said Martin Mikelberg, publicity chairman for the state organiza tion. “People who belong to this or ganization are interested in his toric preservation, antiques, and have curiosity, enthusiasm, and imagination.” They were also used as love to kens during Victorian times, as society discouraged personal gifts of any nature between men and women. Many thimbles were given as engagement gifts, with those of sterling or gold most popular. When the couple mar ried, the bottom part of the thim ble could be cut off and used as the new wife’s wedding band. A woman’s social status was often illustrated by her thimble: Did the woman of the house have free time to do the fine needle work of the day? Was she a ser vant with a common base metal thimble? Was she a woman of position and wealth with a gold or silver thimble sometimes adorned with gemstones? Queen Elizabeth I used to give her ladies in waiting a thimble. Queen Anne and Queen Victoria followed this practice. In fact, Queen Victoria was a firm believ er that “idle hands have need of needle and thread.” The 19th century became the “golden age” of thimbles when the industrial revolution brought silver and gold thimbles with ma chine made knurling and die stamped designs, within the reach of the middle class. Payl Revere, a patriot and mast, silversmith,* made * a 'gold It’s also a great way to meet in teresting people. Mikelberg en joys hearing talks by local ex perts, seeing personal collections of members, and studying papers or seeing video presentations from Quester headquarters. In addition to preservation and restoration projects, the Interna tional Questers award two annual scholarships to graduate students in historic preservation and an annual graduate fellowship in art conservation. Annual dues and contributions benefit the scholarship program. Membership is declining be cause many of the original mem bers are dying or aged. Mikelberg believes that many people would be interested in joining Questers if they knew about the organiza tion. Mikelberg is retired and sells many of the items that he and his wife have collected on eßay. The purses photographed on this page are two of the items, Mikelberg donated to Questers. “I had enough experience in antiques to realize the purses were valuable and could easily be sold if marketed correctly,” Mi kelberg said. He took digital photographs of the purses and placed them on eßay, the one purse listed at a starting bid of $l5O with a re serve of $2OO, and an instant buy of $250. Four days later the purse was purchased using the Instant Buy Option. “The coffers of the Pennsylva nia Questers are now enriched by the proceeds,” Mikelberg said. He only sells objects for Penn sylvania Questers because all pro ceeds are plowed back into re storing and preserving historical sites in the state’s communities. Items donated to the Pennsyl- asdnating thimble for his daughter, Maria. Today, it is on display at the Bos ton Museum of Fine Arts. There have been historical con tributions from the lowly thimble. In 1856 Mr. Latimer Clark was testing the first transatlantic cable. After several failed at tempts, he borrowed a thimble from Emily Fitzgerald, added a small about of acid and zinc and created a miniature electric cell. This thimble generated enough current to send a signal across 3,7oomiles in a second. Thus the design of that thimble became known as the “Atlantic Cable” thimble. For hundreds of years, thim bles have marked historical events. Known as “commemora tives,” thimbles have been pro duced to mark such events as: the meeting of the east and west rail road known as the Golden Spike thimbles; the witch hunts in Mas sachusetts brought out the Salem Witch thimble; the Columbian Exposition as well as the Pan- American Exposition had thim bles struck to commemorate their events. And companion sewing and non-sewing pieces were often developed with the same theme. There are even museums dedi cated strictly to sewing items: “Redditch' England lias a needle m* These 19th century purs es were donated to the Questers and sold for the proceeds to help the organ ization’s efforts to restore and preserve historical Pennsylvania sites. vania Questers can be deducted for income tax purposes. Ques ters have 501 C status as a non profit charity organization. National headquarters of the Questers is located in a histori cally certified federal period brick house at 210 S. Quince St., Philadelphia. To leam more about Questers, write to the national headquar ters to find a chapter in your area. P/flstonj museum and Kreglingen Ger many has a thimble museum. During the mid to late 20th century, thimbles were becoming obsolete but quaint tools of yes teryear. Only during the last 20-30 years has there been any interest in their history or social significance. So how did I get started col lecting thimbles? My paternal grandmother was a seamstress. My maternal grandmother was a milliner (hat maker) as well as a seamstressso the allure of the thimble must have been passed down to me through them. On my 29th birthday, my mother gave me a porcelain-advertising thimble. I loved it, wondered about the who, the what, the where, the why and the when of it, and now my collection of over 1,400 thimbles are enhanced by other antique sewing tools as well. Interested in learning more about thimbles and antique sew ing tools? Write to Thimble Col lectors International, 1952 White Feather Lane, Nokomis FL 34275-5315 (please include a self addressed, stamped envelope). Source: Thimble Collector’s Encyclopedia John J. von Hoello
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers