Sewing Kit Box

Object/Artifact

-

Patrick Henry's Red Hill

Name/Title

Sewing Kit Box

Entry/Object ID

2024.17.2a

Description

Small oval box made of a white fabric with a floral print in beige, blue, green, pink, purple, white, and yellow. A fabric hinge holds the lid to the box, and a metal zipper marked “Supreme” joins the two. Red velvet lines the interior of the box, sewn in with white thread.

Made/Created

Date made

circa 1955 - circa 1970

Time Period

20th Century

Dimensions

Height

1-1/2 in

Width

2-1/2 in

Length

5 in

Material

Fabric, Metal

Provenance

Notes

This sewing kit belonged to Margaret Henry Gammon (1898–1985), a descendant of Patrick Henry through Henry’s son, John Henry (1796–1868). It was given to the donor, Jane Gammon Shore (1942–living), along with a handwritten note from Margaret Henry Gammon stating that she was gifting her a sewing kit with a golden thimble. This kit likely dates from the mid-1950s to the late 1960s. The Supreme Zipper Company, founded by Zol Rozenberg in the 1950s, saw its peak production during the 1960s. This kit was gifted to the Patrick Henry Memorial Foundation on October 23, 2024, by Jane Gammon Shore, a descendant of Patrick Henry, through his youngest son, John Henry (1796–1868). She descends through John’s daughter, Margaret Ann Henry Miller (1827–1881), through Margaret’s daughter, Rose Cabell Miller Gammon (1868–1954), and finally to Rose’s son, Dr. William Miller Gammon (1900–1970). Jane Gammon Shore is the daughter of Dr. William Miller Gammon.