Fife: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This fife was made by an unknown maker in the United States, ca, 1860. It is a Fife in B-Flat, made of brass with nickel plate. The fingerholes are raised. According to the accession paperwork, this fife was used by the donor’s grandfather during the Civil War.

The United States National Park Service Civil War Database lists George Washington Duffield (1832-1903) as a 3rd Class Musician, Regimental Band, 1st New Jersey Volunteer Infantry mustered in July 8, 1861, and honorably mustered out August 9, 1862.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date made: 1860-1870
• Object Name: fife
• Physical Description: brass (overall material)
• Physical Description: nickel plate (overall material)
• Measurements: overall: 14 13/16 in x 5/8 in; 37.62375 cm x 1.5875 cm
• place made: United States
• ID Number: MI.66.195
• catalog number: 66.195
• accession number: 263868
• Credit Line: Gift of Florence Diffield Garrison
• Data Source: National Museum of American History

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of American History through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed.