Socko Hand Puppet: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

Handmade hand puppet known as Socko. Lower body consists of black cloth with glove sewn inside for puppeteer's hand. Face and hands are stuffed nylon stocking sewn into facial and hand characteristics. Brown striped sweater covers arms and upper torso. Eyes are wood buttons. Hair consists of brown thread, and mouth of red thread.

"Socko" was the perfect remedy used for impatient squirming children. As a child photographer, Harry Patton used these puppets in order to capture children's attention so that he could take their pictures from 1947 to 1967. Made of cloth bodies, nylon face and hands, thread hair, and button eyes, these puppets are a prime example of how simple materials can successfully bridge the adult and child worlds. All four of these puppets were made by Lesta Davis Patton for her three grandsons Chris, Derek, and Kevin Patton.

Materials, dates and provenance

• maker: Patton, Harry J.
• Object Name: puppet
• Physical Description: fabric (overall material)
• Physical Description: thread (overall material)
• Physical Description: wood (overall material)
• Physical Description: black (overall color)
• Physical Description: brown (overall color)
• Physical Description: beige (overall color)
• Physical Description: blue (overall color)
• Physical Description: red (overall color)
• place made: United States: Maryland, Cockeysville
• Subject: Puppetry
• ID Number: 1994.0186.01
• catalog number: 1994.0186.01
• accession number: 1994.0186
• Credit Line: Harry J. Patton
• 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.