Prescott Reed Organ (Melodeon): Museum Object and Cultural History
Prescott Reed Organ (Melodeon): date made: 1838-1842. maker: Prescott, Abraham. Object Name: organ.
The object in the museum catalogue
This reed organ was made by Abraham Prescott in Concord, New Hampshire, around 1835-1837. It is a small melodeon, with a rosewood case, single keyboard, with a compass of C-c3, and a pedal activated bellows suspended below the instrument. The instrument is marked:
Abraham Prescott (1789-1858) was an early American maker of melodeons, who concentrated on them after setting up his shop in Concord, New Hampshire in 1831. "Melodeon" is defined as a reed organ with a simple stand, rather than a cabinet-style enclosure, which descends to the floor. Reed organs gradually went out of fashion, as upright pianos became affordable and easily available around 1910.
Materials, dates and provenance
- date made: 1838-1842
- maker: Prescott, Abraham
- Object Name: organ
- Physical Description: rosewood (overall material)
- Physical Description: ivory (overall material)
- Measurements: overall: 30 in x 28 3/4 in x 15 1/2 in; 76.2 cm x 73.025 cm x 39.37 cm
- place made: United States: New Hampshire, Concord
- ID Number: 1992.0085.01
- accession number: 1992.0085
- catalog number: 1992.0085.01
- Credit Line: Gift of Jay A. Lewis
- 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.
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