The Mayflower in the 19th century
The Mayflower has a lot of historical prominence today and in the 19th century it was important to many people and was something that they felt passionate about. An article from the Green-Mountain newspaper from January 1, 1846 detailed the celebration of a Mayflower memorial that contained many speeches and concluded with one given by a descendant of the Mayflower (Freeman, 1846). Celebration of the first English settlers was much more of a regular event during the 19th century. Such events were also especially popular in the area of the original colonies such as New England. For someone to be a direct descendant of the Mayflower pilgrims was often a point of pride and honor. This connection to the founding of the United States was something that manifested itself in many ways during that age such as the celebrations detailed in the newspaper. As a result, the looking glass piece that’s connected to the Mayflower held great significance for Americans and especially New Englanders during the 19th century and it was something that they were passionate and cared about.
We will never be able to understand exactly what Henry Sheldon valued in this looking glass shard and how it captured his curiosity. Understanding its significance, connection to the Mayflower, and placing it in the historical and cultural context of the 19th century helps us paint a better picture of Sheldon’s vision but it can never be absolutely accurate. Nonetheless, purely knowing how much of one man’s attention this glass shard captured is all the justification necessary to investigate and understand as much as possible the significance of this object and its historical context.