Basket
PeriodMid 19th century
Place MadePossibly Marlboro, New Jersey, U.S.A.
MediumOak, ash
Dimensions10.5 × 18 in. (26.7 × 45.7 cm)
ClassificationsAgricultural T&E
Credit LineGift of Luella Smock Schanck, 1936
Object number2023.513
DescriptionA large basket made of half-inch ash stakes and quarter-inch ash weavers, beginning with a rectangular base which flares out after three inches to a wide circular body. The top edge is rimmed with half-round oak lashed with quarter-inch ash, and includes a pair of rectangular gaps just below the rim edge to serve as handles.The basket base is woven with quarter inch filler weavers.Curatorial RemarksBaskets are both utilitarian and beautiful. As an agricultural economy, Monmouth's residents included a number of basket makers. Baskets were lightweight, sturdy, and could be made in a variety of shapes and sizes to suit virtually all the needs of any household or business. Baskets were used in harvesting, storage, laundry, and were also used for gathering oysters, clams, and fish along Monmouth's shores. In the 1850 Federal Census, five men were identified as basket makers, including Cornelius Corsen of Marlboro.NotesThe origins of this basket are uncertain. Luella Smock was born in 1868 in Holmdel, Monmouth County, New Jersey, the daughter of Dennis Hendrickson Smock (1833-1921) and Hannah Elizabeth Green (1838-1927). Luella married fellow Holmdel resident Luther Schanck (1865-1947) in 1888. Both Luther and Luella descended from old Monmouth families, and the basket could have originated from any of the family branches.
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