Russian Bazaar Souvenir

Maker Whitehead and Hoag Company

Period1916

MediumBronze, silk

Dimensions1.25 in. (3.2 cm)

SignedThe medal is stamped on the reverse "WHITEHEAD & HOAG CO. / NEWARK N.J."

ClassificationsThe Robert Hartshorne World War I Collection

Credit LineGift of Mary Minturn Adams in memory of her Hartshorne Ancestors, 2018

Object number2018.10.20.18

DescriptionA small circular medal, stamped in bronze, with the Russian Imperial Coat of Arms on the front with the inscription "SOUVENIR RUSSIAN BAZAAR / DEC. 4 - 12, 1916" along the edge. A narrow red, white and blue silk ribbon is threaded through a small hanging loop at the center top of the medal. The medal is displayed in a small red leather covered case with an attached lid which has "VERDUN" impressed, opening to reveal a dark red velvet lining and shallow circular depression for the medal. The case itself is identical to accession number 2018.10.20.8.
Curatorial RemarksCoupled with the ongoing political upheavals in Russia, the failure of the country's 1916 wheat crop threatened starvation throughout Russia. Relief efforts in the United States included a "Russian Bazaar" held at the 71st Regiment Armory in New York City from 4 through 12 December, 1916. The Newark firm of Whitehead and Hoag was founded in 1892 by Benjamin S. Whitehead (1858 - 1940) and his partner Chester R. Hoag (1860 - 1953). Hoag, who was born in Pennsylvania, moved to Newark in 1886 and met Whitehead while working as a twine salesman. The two men formed a partnership that would quickly become the largest manufacturer of buttons in the world. The Association has two other Whitehead and Hoag products: a medal cast in honor of the Hudson-Fulton Celebration of 1909 (accession number 2018.10.20.20) and a 1917 New York Military Census badge (accession number 2018.10.20.33).NotesThis medal was collected by Robert Hartshorne during his service in the First World War. Hartshorne joined the American Red Cross in 1916. His association with that organization apparently put him in touch with the American Committee for Devastated France, which intended to introduce modern American farming methods in those battlefield areas heavily damaged near Rheims. Hartshorne arrived in France in May of 1918 and returned to the United States at the end of December the same year. Hartshorne collected numerous medals, uniform insignia, and souvenirs commemorating his time abroad. For a more complete biography of Robert Hartshorne, please see the portrait miniature of Robert Hartshorne (accession number 2018.10.9).

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