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Snare drum
Maker: Eli Brown
Date: 1835 ca.
Place Made:Windsor or Bloomfield, Connecticut, United States, North America
Serial No: none
SignedOn label inside drum: EL[I] BROWN / [illegible]
Markingsnone
DescriptionThis rope tension, regulation US Eagle side drum (15-1/4" x 16-/2") was built for military use by Eli Brown (1781-1855) of Bloomfield, Connecticut, about 1835. At some point in its history the shell was cut down to make it easier to play on the march as evidenced by many empty tack holes as well as the shortening of the ornate eagle painting. There is no strainer on the drum--the snares are secured under the rim and cannot be adjusted. The metal hooks (possibly by Lyon & Healy, ca. 1900?) are also later additions attesting to the durability of this pre-Civil War era drum.
Wood shell and rims, painted red. Brass tack design. Rope tension with nine leather tugs. Originally, holes drilled in the shell for the rope to pass through, later metal hooks were added.
Wood shell and rims, painted red. Brass tack design. Rope tension with nine leather tugs. Originally, holes drilled in the shell for the rope to pass through, later metal hooks were added.
DimensionsShell height (with rims): 385 mm (15-1/4 in)
Head diameter: 420 mm (16-1/2 in)
Head diameter: 420 mm (16-1/2 in)
ProvenanceArne B. Larson Collection, Vermillion, South Dakota, 1979.
Terms
Credit Line: Arne B. Larson Collection, 1979
On view
Published ReferencesJayson Dobney, Innovations in American Snare Drums 1850-1920, MM Thesis, University of South Dakota, 2003, pp. 104-105.
Object number: 02866