Description:
Powder horn inscribed: “JOHN : ARNOLD : HIS : HORN : MADE : AD / 1775 : MADE : IN : CAMPS : IN : CAMBRIDG / CLOCK / F[ort] C[obble] hill / L[echmere]. P[oint] . / Boston / Ch[arlestown] / F[ort]. B[unker]. Hill / F[ort]. Pr[ospect]. Hill / F[ort]. Wi[nter]. Hill / F[ort]. No. I / F[ort]. No. II / F[ort]. No. III.” This horn is imaginative, if not professionally carved, and may have been done by the owner. The uneven lettering, phonetic spelling, and poor planning provide some comic relief. Nevertheless, what mattered most—the Boston skyline, the harbor with five ships, and the fortifications—are neatly drawn, while the tall clock connotes the pressure of time on every soldier who was needed at home. In 1775, John Arnold served in Captain Experience Storrs’ 2nd Company from Mansfield in Colonel Israel Putnam’s 3rd Connecticut Regiment. Elisha Crain also served in this company and the almost identical Crain horn is by the same hand as this example.

Tags:
military

Subjects:
Armies

Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+2005.20.52

Research on objects in the collections, including provenance, is ongoing and may be incomplete. If you have additional information or would like to learn more about a particular object, please email fc-museums-web@fivecolleges.edu.