Boring but Bright

Even things that are, quite frankly, boring at face value can have an unexpected, if still utilitarian, colorful side. A clutch of checks bears a beautifully marbled edge that doubled as a security measure when matched with the stub book. Bright blue bills were printed in the Confederate States of America in the midst of extreme wartime deprivations, perhaps to lend an air of legitimacy. Even quotidian things, like a file to hold your business receipts, might bear a pop of color to draw your eye to the alphabetical organizing schema.

[Various denominations of Confederate Currency], 1864. Currency Collection.

[Checks from Peter Warren and William Bolan on the Bank of England], July 28 – August 3, 1749. Peter Warren Papers. [Finding Aid]

Speaking of pops of color, note how your eye is drawn to the colored shoes in this dizzying scrapbook either made by a salesperson plying their wares or a very enthusiastic footwear aficionado. Color stands out and advertising has always had a penchant for the dramatic, including in early America. Consider these eye-watering trade cards. One for the Eagle Pencil Company even features a mechanical element to reveal the newly installed Statue of Liberty. The bright yellow pencils themselves stand in stark contrast to the rather dreary industrial scene that is featured on the box they would have been sold in. Color played a role in every part of American life, and even the dullest things could still be exceptionally bright.

Kerr & Bird Book and Job Printers, trade card. Philadelphia, [ca. late-19th century?]. Ephemera Collection.

Morris, Clawson, & Co. Steam Printers, trade card. Philadelphia, [ca. mid-19th century]. Ephemera Collection.

Eagle Pencil Company, trade card. New York, [ca. 1886]. Gerald T. and Charlotte B. Maxson Printed Ephemera Collection. [Finding Aid]