September 2008, Ezra Barnhouse Goods - Candle Boxes

[crabby]

September Bully Buy!!!

Featured this month: the reproduction candle box, manufactured by Pat Cunningham, as seen in the recent Candle Box thread. This reproduction is from the original found in the collection of personal items of Capt. Stephen V. Shipman of the 1st Wisconsin Cavalry.

They are normally priced at $25.00 + shipping, but for the month of September we will take 10% off the price. For those going to Ft. Duffield you would save even more as there would be no shipping charge, as we will have them with us.

The attached pictures of the original are courtesy of Steve Sullivan. Thanks Steve.



John

[JordanRicketts]

Count me in I will take one! See you at Duffield!

[crabby]

Here are photos of the reproduction candle box. Per the original, the completed candle box has a Japanned finish.

[Abrams]

I'll be popping by Fort Duffield on Saturday, but as a spectator, not a participant (had to work Fri and Sat morning). I would purchase one if you have an extra one with you.

[FTrooper]

COOL! Money on its way!

Chris Fischer
Fort McKavett
&
F-Troop

[PVT.THIB]

John,
Sent you a PM.
Thanks,

[KeystoneGuard]

Payment sent!

[JerseySkilletLicker]

Crabby,
Its great you are getting goods from Pat, his stuff is so darn nice and priced really fair...here's hoping you can continue the relationship!

[Dutchman Dick]

Looking forward to getting mine! :D

[KeystoneGuard]

Just got mine! Great repro. I do have a question: Where does one find small enough candles to fit inside the holder like the picture above or is it acceptable to jam a large candle on the holder?

[P. M. Cunningham, Tinner]

Please don't jam, I don't want to start repair work yet!

Candles are available in a approriate size. Best I have found over the years are hanakuh candles. Searching the web however I can not find anyone actually stating the diamensions of the hanakuh candles they sell, so I can't point you to a specific source. My stash came from a local hardware store several years ago.

Patrick Cunningham

[Dutchman Dick]

You might try e-mailing "Crabby" at Ezra Barnhouse Goods. In the e-mail he sent me, he said he had to go through a church supply store to find appropriately-sized candles, so he can probably steer you in the right direction.

[ley74]

Another top notch item John. Thank you very much for having these reproduced. Patrick - Wow!

[Spinster]

Patrick,

Take a look here, and see if these fit

http://www.generalwax.com/p___872.html

What you are buying as Hannaku candles may be general religious purpose Sabbath candles.

For some years, the only time I could find candles locally to fit my some of my tin lanterns was right around Passover--until I started getting them from a kosher grocery about 50 miles away.

[rogue]

I found a source for the wee candles at craft shops and craft faires where handmade goods are sold for home decorating. Easier to find in the spring (faires), but worth a try.
Steve Sullivan

[Pvt. Sweetey]

Just got mine! Great repro. I do have a question: Where does one find small enough candles to fit inside the holder like the picture above or is it acceptable to jam a large candle on the holder?

Birthday candle? HAHAHA

[Abrams]

These do require fairly small and short candles. I am going to melt some beeswax and try dipping them until I get the desired height and width. I mean, a half a dozen will hold me through 4-5 events anyway.

I got mine at Fort Duffield, and I am impressed with the looks and sturdiness of the lil rascal. It looks to hold a weekends worth of little candles and matches.

[crabby]

It took us quite a bit of searching but we found candles that fit the candle box. For everyone who did not recieve a candle in their box, we will be mailing you one.

Thanks,
Crabby

[crabby]

I have found some candles and I am now placing one in each box. Those who have already recieved their box please contact me and I'll help you out. The candles I have found will last about 45 minutes each. I will also be offering packs of the candles by end of week. (6 for a $1.00).

Crabby

[pvt_jb]

Your the best John!

I can't wait to pick mine up at Marmaduke's!

[Hairy Nation Boys]

Would this be an item I could buy at Marmadukes?

[PVT.THIB]

Got mine in today. It is a very nice, portable item. A bit smaller than I expected but will be very useful.
Thanks,

[Dutchman Dick]

Looking forward to getting mine! :D

Just came in today's mail. Kudos to Pat Cunningham for a great product, and to "Crabby" for great customer service:D! I hadn't realized the small scale of the box until I saw it "up close and personal". Nice, convenient pocket size. I wonder if these were originally intended to be a source of illumination, or as a way to transfer fire to something else without burning your fingers as the match burns down (I've seen flint-and-steel tinderboxes that were designed with built-in candlesticks for supposedly just that purpose).

Now if only my "strike anywhere" matches hadn't gone bad (about a third just fizzle out without actually getting a flame, a third won't light at all, and the rest sort of "hang fire" before lighting)...:confused_

Anybody know if safety "strike on box" matches existed in any quantity during the Civil War? 'Cause "strike anywhere" matches are mighty hard to find in my area (the "Ohio Blue Tips" I have that went bad are at least 7 years old).

[PVT.THIB]

I find mine at smaller grocery stores and hardware stores. I usually buy a large amount when I do come across them.

[Erik]

If you want strike anywhere matches, slip across the border as they are still available in Canada, at least in Ontario, at grocery chains and convenience stores. Most come from China. One brand is Redbird.
The safety people have not caught onto these yet.

Erik Simundson

[crabby]

Yes, we should have some with us for sale at Marmaduke's.

Crabby

[Dutchman Dick]

I was just looking through vol. 4 of "Lord's", and on p. 113, lo and behold, is yet another match-safe/candle holder, similar in design to "our" gadget! This one came from the estate of Capt. E.S. Skilton, Co."A", 57th Ohio Infantry. The only significant differences between this one and the one Pat copied are (a) painted green instead of japanned black, and (b) an apparent "scratcher" surface that looks like raised punchmarks in a square pattern on the match compartment lid, for lighting the matches.

I wonder if these two candle holder/match safes were made by the same manufacturer, or if it was once a fairly common design that was made by more than one person? We'll likely never know...

[P. M. Cunningham, Tinner]

I wonder if these two candle holder/match safes were made by the same manufacturer, or if it was once a fairly common design that was made by more than one person? We'll likely never know...

You found one of the images out there. There is another shot of what I believe is another different one in some other book, but I can't find my file.

Buried in the collection stacks of the Wisconsin Historical Society is one similiar to the one pictured in Lord's that was carried by Gen. Lucius Fairchild. It is also painted green and has a stricker plate. That one is slightly larger than the one that is currently being reproduced by about 1/8". Because of the nature of tin work being patterned based, the Fairchild one was probably made by a different manufacurer. The size variation is to much to be accounted for as variation in cutting and machinery set up.

Personnally, I believe there are a number of these critters in various collections. I only stumbled upon the Fairchild one when walking through the stacks with a curator. What I am really waiting to come across is some period literature advertising or talking about these items.

Patrick Cunningham

[crabby]

Those needing the candle for the box, please respond to us on this forum. Due to the recent storm our internet at the house is down (someday soooooon we may get it back!). :cry_smile

Crabby

[Dutchman Dick]

Now if only my "strike anywhere" matches hadn't gone bad (about a third just fizzle out without actually getting a flame, a third won't light at all, and the rest sort of "hang fire" before lighting)...:confused_
I figured out how to salvage my "Ohio Blue Tips". I have one of those toaster-broiler ovens that you can set from 100-400 degrees Fahrenheit. I set it at 200 degrees, put a FEW matches on some foil on the baking pan, and set it to bake for an hour. Sure enough, they light like they ought to. I'm guessing they absorbed too much moisture from the air over the years (especially in the unheated garage where I used to keep them all year around).

[Suppelsa]

Pat,
How long does it take you to make one of these. I ordered mine after seeing one last weekend and it looked fairly intricate.


You found one of the images out there. There is another shot of what I believe is another different one in some other book, but I can't find my file.

Buried in the collection stacks of the Wisconsin Historical Society is one similiar to the one pictured in Lord's that was carried by Gen. Lucius Fairchild. It is also painted green and has a stricker plate. That one is slightly larger than the one that is currently being reproduced by about 1/8". Because of the nature of tin work being patterned based, the Fairchild one was probably made by a different manufacurer. The size variation is to much to be accounted for as variation in cutting and machinery set up.

Personnally, I believe there are a number of these critters in various collections. I only stumbled upon the Fairchild one when walking through the stacks with a curator. What I am really waiting to come across is some period literature advertising or talking about these items.

Patrick Cunningham

[P. M. Cunningham, Tinner]

Pat,
How long does it take you to make one of these. I ordered mine after seeing one last weekend and it looked fairly intricate.

What a horrible question to ask, it is depressing to think about. Since everything is pattern based and machine constructed, the more items made in a run the quicker they go. Get the machine set up once and it is a simple matter of running multiples. Unfortunately with these, it also means the longer for the end product to a degree because my eyes tend to cross after a time.

For some sense of the time involved, it took two hours to knock ot 23 hinges the other day. Running two hinges at a time entails cutting the hinge strips, hemming the metal to accept the wire, setting the wire in, then offseting the hinge so it can eventually be soldered. Every two means one lap around the shop. The good news is I just cut that time by a third this morning. Things tend to go quicker when one isn't forced to drag crutches along (for the second time) and can just limp a lot. :wink_smil

Parick Cunningham