Images(2)

Image courtesy of the Library of Congress

Weathervane

Maker J. W. Fiske Iron Works

Periodca. 1881 - 1895

MediumCast iron, molded copper, and tin

Dimensions51.75 × 39 × 20 in. (131.4 × 99.1 × 50.8 cm)

ClassificationsAdvertising, Business & Ornamental Artifacts

Credit LineGift of Miss Laura Harding, 1950

Object number1983.414

DescriptionA three-dimensional weathervane in the form of a trotting horse pulling a sulkey with a driver who wears a flat-crowned cap and sports a large moustache. The horse's tail streams back along the right side of the driver. The vane sits atop a wind direction indicator above a circular seamed ball. A mounting bracket of four heavy gauge flat iron staps angle outwards from beneath the ball to attach the weathervane to its post.
Curatorial RemarksThis weathervane design in the shape of a trotting horse pulling a sulkey and driver, copyrighted in 1881 by the J. W. Fiske Ironworks in New York City, is pictured in the company's 1891 catalog. Joseph Winn Fiske (1832 - 1903) was born in Massachusetts. In 1853 he went to Australia to sell hardware and other iron goods. Five years later, Fiske returned to the United States and started his ironworks firm in New York City. The company specialized in both indoor and outdoor objects ranging from fireplace sets, bedsteads and umbrella stands to weathervanes, garden furniture, and trade figures. Fiske weathervanes were priced from $6.50 to $350.00 for mass-produced selections, with additional charges for custom designed vanes.NotesThe form of a trotting horse, with or without a carriage or sulkey, was a very popular choice for weathervane manufacturers. The J. W. Fiske Co. of New York City copyrighted this design in 1881. It depicts the horse St. Julien as driven by Orrin A. Hickok (1838 - 1903). Hickok started riding Thoroughbred horses as a boy. He later turned to trotters after gaining too much weight. In the late 1870s, Hickok purchased a horse named St. Julien, who up to that time had been pulling a milk wagon. In 1879, Hickok drove him to a record of 2:12 3/4 in Oakland, CA. St. Julien earned the nickname of "the king of the turf." About 1880, Currier & Ives issued a chromolithograph of Hickock and St. Julien in another race. The image closely resembles the Fiske weathervane, down even to the side of the driver that the horse's tail passes on. This particular vane came from a barn in Holmdel, Monmouth County. It reflects the county's long history of horse breeding and racing that dates back to the late seventeenth century.

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