Something New for the Old Forum: 1926 Astor/Columbia River Historical Expedition medal

Mr_Colombo

I’m glad I was able to acquire this ceramic expedition medal. It has some cool history behind it, so I wanted to share it with the group. The 1926 Astor/Columbia River Historical Expedition medal was crafted by Margaret Kelly Cable at the University of North Dakota's (UND) School of Mines. Cable, known as "the Lady of the Wheel," presented at the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition. In 1921, she became an assistant professor at UND and later gained recognition at the 1927 Women's World Fair in Chicago, where she was named North Dakota's Outstanding Woman. She also exhibited at the 1933 Century of Progress Exposition in Chicago, where her work was praised as "the outstanding exhibition of United States pottery."

The 1926 Astor/Columbia River Historical Expedition medal, made from North Dakota clay, has it's original glass beads and string, which were issued to participants at a banquet during the Columbia River Historical Expedition. The newspaper articles detail how the medals were made and give more insight into the expedition.

Mr_Spud

That’s really cool, thanks for posting this.

coinkat

It is pottery from the North Dakota school of mines so that even makes this more special… what a terrific item. What is the size? I suspect that it is perhaps 3 1/2”. Have you seen others? I ask mainly because I suspect there might have been other colors/glazes used.

Congrats…

Mr_Colombo

@coinkat
Thanks! The medal measures 3.7 inches. I’ve found only two others online, one in the UND collection. The colors vary slightly, but these photos are a good representation of most examples. The article above describes them as blue and grey. I believe no more than 150 were made, based on the number of people who went on the expedition, though there might be fewer since the medals were given only to those who attended the banquet reception, excluding some students. I’m still researching to determine the exact numbers.

coinkat

@Mr_Colombo

Yours is the first I have seen… but honestly, I have not really been looking either. I do think it is rare and the real market for it will likely be among serious pottery collectors. I would agree that these would have available at any banquet or reception. I would be really interested to know what the surviving population looks like.

Mr_Colombo

@coinkat

Same—I wasn’t actively looking for one and didn’t even know it existed until I noticed the Astor design, which immediately caught my interest. A summary of events written by the organizer confirms that the medal was presented at a banquet, part of a prescheduled route through Grand Forks that included a stop at the UND School of Mines. Even more cool that a clay impression of a surviving Astor medal was used in the making of these ceramic medals. Yes, I would say it’s mainly for a pottery specialist, and Margaret Kelly Cable, the artist, has a following in the fine art community that collects her works. It definitely fits in the realm of exonumia and in my collection as a presentation medal. Good point about the survival estimate—it’s difficult to establish for an item like this. I’m sure most of them are being passed down, especially since it was made by a prominent potter, and these aren’t likely to surface in numismatic circles. Even JFK collected her pottery.

JCH22

Great post-thanks! A little additional information about the itinerary :
:

coinkat

I did not know that JFK was a collector…