Saturday, February 6, 2016

A Marshall Field's 100th Anniversary Handkerchief

I found this handkerchief on eBay. I knew it had a story and I wanted to know what it was. (It dated to the year of my birth--1952!)

The words "The Clock Strikes 100"appear next to a clock face-- a very specific looking clock-- in a field of repeated 100s. Around the border are drawings of buildings, people, and modes of transportation dated 1852, 1901, and 1952.



I goggled the motto and discovered that the clock is the famous Marshall Field clock at their Chicago flagship store. It was installed in 1871 as a beacon to the store which Field envisioned as a meeting place. (Which reminds me of the saying, "Meet Me At the Eagle" for John Wanamaker's in Philadelphia! Another large downtown store with an atrium--and pipe organ! See a souvenir hanky with the Eagle here.) 
The Clock Mender by Norman Rockwell features the Marshall Field Clock; Saturday Evening Post, 1945
You can see photos of the store and the clock here.  The Marshall Field & Company building is a Chicago landmark and is the second largest store in the world. The original building was lost in the great Chicago fire. Marshall Field moved into a new store in 1871. Additions were continuously made until 1914 and it reigned as the largest store in the world, covering 73 acres! 

I found many more Marshall Field 100 years handkerchiefs shared on Handkerchief Heroes.

I had no idea what I was going to learn when I bought this hanky! 




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