by Jill Holt, Curator of Textiles

The buttonhook was a common household item in the past. It consisted of a metal hook and shaft with a handle that was usually made of metal, wood, bone, or celluloid (an early day form of plastic). The buttonhook was used to fasten the multiple buttons on shoes, gloves, and dresses. Buttonhooks were frequently included in manicure and toiletry sets along with files, buffers, and cuticle tools. Also, department stores and shoe stores gave away buttonhooks that advertised their businesses.

I recently came across a type of button fastener in our collection that I had never seen. This button fastener was designed in the style of parallel action pliers. It was invented by William Bernard and patented in 1914 by the William Schollhorn Company of New Haven, Connecticut. Bernard invented numerous types of pliers,

nippers, and punches for the company. With today’s fashions, there is no longer a need for buttonhooks and button fasteners. Discovering the history of the Bernard fastener is just one of the reasons why I love my job!

by Jill Holt, Curator of Textiles

I recently had one of those “I love my job” moments. We have several United States flags in our collection that are purported to be the “last” flag flown on the battleship U.S.S. Oklahoma. I was pleased to discover that we do indeed have the last one.

The U.S.S. Oklahoma (BB-37) was moored on battleship row at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on December 7, 1941. It was struck by Japanese torpedoes and quickly capsized with 429 sailors and Marines losing their lives. The ship was righted and placed in dry dock in 1943. Its superstructure and guns were removed prior to the decommission ceremony that was held on September 1, 1944.

As I unrolled the red, white, and blue wool bunting 48 star flag, I was thrilled when I saw markings on the canvas hoist edge. Stamped on the canvas was “Mare Island, February 1944.” Written in ink was “Last flag to fly on the U.S.S. Oklahoma (BB-37), September 1, 1944, S.S. Isquith U.S. Navy Commander, Commanding.” Lt. Commander Solomon S. Isquith was the engineer officer on board the U.S.S. Utah on December 7, 1941 when it was sunk at Pearl Harbor. After the Japanese attack, he was placed in charge of salvage operations at Pearl Harbor and he presided over the decommission ceremony for the U.S.S. Oklahoma in 1944. He stated, “Today the life of a ship will come to an end – as a combat vessel – after 35 years of honorable service in all areas of the world. We will be sorry to leave her.”

The last flag to fly on the U.S.S. Oklahoma was presented in 1945 to Governor Robert S. Kerr who in turn gave it over to the Oklahoma Historical Society. It remains safely in our care today.

by Jill Holt, Curator of Textiles

The purpose of Found in Collections is to share information about interesting items that are in our collections. I am going to stray from that purpose to discuss items that we lack. As we developed our most recent exhibit “Another Hot Oklahoma Night, A Rock and Roll Exhibit,” it became very apparent that we lacked numerous items of clothing in our textile collection. While we have many examples of men’s tuxedos and formal wear, we have relatively few examples of everyday men’s clothing. I had to search diligently to track down blue jeans, cardigan sweaters, sport shirts, penny loafers, and sneakers to add to our collection and be used in the exhibit.

Society has adopted a more casual attitude towards saving and preserving clothing especially men’s clothing. As the curator of the textile collection, I realize the need for us to begin a concerted effort to add to our collection of both men’s and women’s clothing with a focus on clothing from the 1950s to the present. I would like to use this forum to make a plea to the public to consider donating vintage clothing items to the Oklahoma Historical Society. So, clean out your closets and bring us your platform shoes, your tie dye shirts, your go-go boots, your disco shirt, and any other clothes that are in good condition.