Title
Jug
Creator
Made by Millington, Astbury, and Paulson, Trenton, New Jersey
Date
1861
Label
#314
Jug Commemorating the Death of Colonel Elmer Ellsworth
Made by Millington, Astbury, and Paulson, Trenton, New Jersey, 1861
Made of Porcelain
Partial Gift of Jay and Emma Lewis and Partial Purchase with Funds Provided by W. Groke Mickey
2019.3.1
The death of Colonel Elmer Ellsworth, the first Union officer killed in the American Civil War, is graphically depicted on this jug. On May 24, 1861, Ellsworth and his men occupied Alexandria, Virginia. They entered the Marshall House Hotel to tear down a large Confederate flag that the hotel’s proprietor, James Jackson, had been flying for several weeks. On his way downstairs, Ellsworth was shot and killed by Jackson, who was then shot and bayonetted by Corporal Francis Brownell.
Ellsworth was no ordinary colonel. He was a friend of Abraham Lincoln, and his body lay in state in the White House. “Remember Ellsworth” became a rallying cry for Union troops, and a range of commemorative materials such as this jug were made to celebrate Ellsworth.
Jugs like this were as likely to be found on the bar of a tavern as in a home, but the inscription under the spout, “D. Richardson presented by his Daughter,” suggests that this particular jug was, in fact, destined to grace a domestic setting.
Jug Commemorating the Death of Colonel Elmer Ellsworth
Made by Millington, Astbury, and Paulson, Trenton, New Jersey, 1861
Made of Porcelain
Partial Gift of Jay and Emma Lewis and Partial Purchase with Funds Provided by W. Groke Mickey
2019.3.1
The death of Colonel Elmer Ellsworth, the first Union officer killed in the American Civil War, is graphically depicted on this jug. On May 24, 1861, Ellsworth and his men occupied Alexandria, Virginia. They entered the Marshall House Hotel to tear down a large Confederate flag that the hotel’s proprietor, James Jackson, had been flying for several weeks. On his way downstairs, Ellsworth was shot and killed by Jackson, who was then shot and bayonetted by Corporal Francis Brownell.
Ellsworth was no ordinary colonel. He was a friend of Abraham Lincoln, and his body lay in state in the White House. “Remember Ellsworth” became a rallying cry for Union troops, and a range of commemorative materials such as this jug were made to celebrate Ellsworth.
Jugs like this were as likely to be found on the bar of a tavern as in a home, but the inscription under the spout, “D. Richardson presented by his Daughter,” suggests that this particular jug was, in fact, destined to grace a domestic setting.
Credit Line
Partial Gift of Jay and Emma Lewis and Partial Purchase with Funds Provided by W. Groke Mickey
Citation
Made by Millington, Astbury, and Paulson, Trenton, New Jersey, “Jug,” Museums at Washington and Lee University: Online Exhibits, accessed May 17, 2024, https://exhibits-museums.omeka.wlu.edu/items/show/242.