Brief description |
Upper section of cupboard attributed to Christian Turck, Washington County or Ozaukee County, ca. 1845-1865. |
Object name |
Cupboard |
Maker |
Turck, Christian, 1811-1908 |
Date |
ca. 1845-1865 |
Dimensions |
35”H x 35 3/4”W x 12 1/2"D |
Materials and techniques |
Walnut; Glazed doors |
Original location |
Kirchhayn, Washington County, Wisconsin or Fredonia, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin |
Location of use |
Port Washington, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin |
Current location |
Eagle, Waukesha County, Wisconsin |
Description |
Upper section of walnut cupboard with glazed doors (lower section no longer extant). Two small drawers are joined with dovetails at the front and back and reinforced with nails; hand-planed drawer bottoms. Turned wooden pulls are attached to drawer fronts with screws. Cupboard frame features rounded corners and narrow cornice. Currently among the furnishings of the Schottler House parlor at Old World Wisconsin. |
History |
This cupboard was passed down in the family of maker Christian Turck and donated to Old World Wisconsin by Turck's great-grandchildren, Elsie and Hattie Hoppe of Port Washington, Ozaukee County, in 1976. According to Old World Wisconsin records, the lower section of the cupboard was irreparably damaged in a fire that took place while the cupboard was off-site for restoration in 1979. Born in Nassau, Germany in 1811, Christian Turck came to Wisconsin in 1845, settling in the community of Kirchhayn, Washington County. By 1856, the house Turck built in Kirchhayn had been acquired by another German settler, Adam Schottler, and Turck and his family were living in the community of Fredonia in neighboring Ozaukee County. Federal census records place the Turck family in Fredonia in 1860 and 1880; Christian Turck appears in the 1900 federal census for the Town of Saukville in Ozaukee County, living with his son John (Johannes) Turck and son's family. The Turck-Schottler house was moved to Old World Wisconsin in 1977 and is currently furnished with several examples of Turck's handiwork, including this cupboard as well as a table, rocking chair, and bed. It is uncertain whether Turck built this furniture for his first home in Kirchhayn, which would date the works to ca. 1845-1855, or in Fredonia, which would place the works to 1856 or later. |
Related objects |
Other examples of furniture attributed to Christian Turck in the Schottler House at Old World Wisconsin include a table (object # OW1976.129.1), a rope bed (object # OW1976.130) and a rocking chair (object # OW1976.131): http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,2866 http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,2910 http://content.wisconsinhistory.org/u?/wda,2867 |
Owner |
Old World Wisconsin (Wisconsin Historical Society) |
Object # |
OW1976.132.4 |
Rights |
(c) 2009 by the Wisconsin Historical Society—Old World Wisconsin Historic Site. Contact the owner for more information. http://oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org/ |
Digital collection |
Wisconsin Decorative Arts Database |
Digital identifier |
OW010 |
Digital format |
image/jpeg |
Type |
Physical object |
Keywords |
Furniture; Cupboard; Case furniture; Furnishings (artifacts); Furnishings and equipment |
Date digitized |
2010-06-24 |
Date modified |
2010-10-08 |