Cupboard

Description

Two-door shallow cupboard of pine. Carcass, five pairs of shelves, partition, four back boards and three face stiles butted and nailed. Doors are frame and flat panel with iron butt hinges and door latches and a between-centers turned birch knob with threaded tenon on each. Proper right end has a between-centers turned, probably birch, knob near the top, approximately centered, and the remnant of another near the back just below the level of shelf three from bottom. Proper right door had a surface mounted rim lock on the inside at some time but it is no longer with cupboard. Exterior painted red. "Fire!" in black painted script below top knob in proper right end.

Notes

Used by the Medicine Department at the Center Family, Mount Lebanon, NY. The wooden knob on the side wall above the script inscription "Fire!" was likely used to hold a fire trumpet or horn. One such horn in the Museums collection is 1959.11039.1. An entry in"A Domestic Journal of Daily Occurances (sic) Kept by Isaac N. Youngs Beginning on January, 1834, New Lebanon," dated June 3, 1837, notes: "A sad disaster befell Henry Gay, about 4 ocl P.M. the loss of his house by fire! It was immediately seen by some of our folks and in a few minutes an alarm was raised, particularly at the 2d family, by blowing a trumpet &c." The Second Family was located just 200 yards from the Center Family, where the cupboard was obtained.