Children and Desks

Doll Slant-Front Desk, circa 1760

Toy (Recreational artifact)

Child's Fall-front Desk, 1750-1800

Fall-front desk

Eighteenth-century children had few forms of furniture made specifically for their needs: cradles, highchairs, and perhaps small chairs. This fall-front desk is a rarity. A well-to-do family probably had this made for their young son. Perhaps this boy -- by mimicking his father who sat at a larger version of this desk -- would carry on the family business.

Doll Slant-Front Desk, 1790-1810

Toy (Recreational artifact)

Doll Slant-Front Desk, 1860-1880

Toy (Recreational artifact)

School Desks, circa 1900

School desk

The importance that nineteenth-century Americans put on the technology of education is indicated by the hundreds of patents on school furniture between 1860 and 1900. Desks designed to be in rows facing the teacher reveal the teacher-centered classrooms of the era. These cast iron and wood school desks and benches were manufactured in Buffalo, New York, in about 1900.

Young Girl Playing School with Dolls and a Peter Rabbit Stuffed Toy, circa 1920

Photographic print

Doll Desk and Chair, 1915-1921

Toy (Recreational artifact)

Family Time at Home, 1924

Oil painting (Visual work)

In 1924-25 the Ford Motor Company ran a series of sixteen dramatic advertisements in the Saturday Evening Post and Country Gentleman magazines. The effectiveness of the ads was due in large part to the specially commissioned artwork that accompanied the descriptive text. This painting appeared as two segments -- losing some of its content in the process -- when reproduced as part of the 15th ad.

Chautauqua Industrial Art Desk, 1926-1930

Portable desk

Students and Teacher in a One-Room School near Richmond Hill, Georgia, circa 1940

Photographic print

Henry Ford purchased vast amounts of land around present-day Richmond Hill, Georgia, beginning in the 1920s. After acquiring the property, Ford became interested in the economic and civic improvement of the area. This photo shows the poor learning conditions faced by many students in the area. In 1940, Ford opened the new George Washington Carver School for the African-American community.

School Desk, Used at the Shrine of the Little Flower Grade School, 1940-1949

School Desk

This type of desk became the standard for both public and private elementary schools after World War II. Students were responsible for supplying and organizing their school supplies, which were stored under the hinged desk top. These desks continued to be used in classrooms even after dip pens and ink bottles were replaced by cartridge pens and, eventually, ballpoint pens.

Edison Institute Schools Students in Class, Giddings Family Home, Greenfield Village, September 1944

Photographic print

Henry Ford's original vision for his museum and "early American village" was to provide hands-on learning opportunities for students. Ford's educational philosophy was "learn to do by doing." In the experimental Edison Institute Schools he founded in 1929, students learned not only from books, but also from objects and hands-on experiences. Many attended classes in Greenfield Village's historic buildings.

Doll Schoolroom Furniture Set, 1940-1950

Toy (Recreational artifact)

U.S. Army Training Center Play Set, 1945-1955

Toy (Recreational artifact)

Secretary Mechanical Toy, 1950-1960

Mechanical toy

Edison Institute Schools Students in Town Hall Classroom, Greenfield Village, 1969

Photographic print

Henry Ford's original vision for his museum and "early American village" was to provide hands-on learning opportunities for students. Ford's educational philosophy was "learn to do by doing." In the experimental Edison Institute Schools he founded in 1929, students learned not only from books, but also from objects and hands-on experiences. Many attended classes in Greenfield Village's historic buildings.

Fisher-Price Play Family School, 1971-1975

Play set

The Civil Rights movement, as well as the emerging woman's movement, created a whole new world for kids growing up in the 1970s. As social barriers and traditional gender stereotypes began to break down, kids were encouraged to appreciate diversity. This popular toy was one of the first playthings to include an African-American toy figure.

Fisher-Price "School Days Play Desk," 1975

Educational toy

Barbie Travel Agent Play Set, 1986-1989

Play set