Longfellow Luggage

Among the museum holdings of the Longfellow House – Washington’s Headquarters NHS is an extensive collection of luggage: boxes, trunks, and suitcases used by multiple generations of the extended Longfellow family.

A Transatlantic Trunk

This domed trunk is of a design popular in the mid-19th century. For travel on long journeys across the Atlantic, stout trunks were needed to protect one’s belongings from dampness and rough seas that could send stored boxes and other luggage sliding about in ships’ holds and cabins. Like the one shown here, many of these trunks had domed lids, designed to make water run off them instead of pooling on top. This trunk was made in France and has an associated tag with Henry W. Longfellow’s name on it. It appears to be one of the trunks Henry had with him on the family’s 1868-1869 grand tour of Europe, and it may have been purchased on the trip during their time in Paris.

Louis Vuitton Steamer Trunk

The second trunk is an item Alice Longfellow probably purchased in the early 20th century. It was made by the famed luxury brand Louis Vuitton. Renowned for their quality and attention to detail, Louis Vuitton trunks were first manufactured in 1854. Vuitton trunks were lighter in weight than earlier models and featured flat lids that enabled them to be stacked, but they still retained a waterproof lacquered canvas exterior. Based on its design details the trunk probably dates to the early twentieth century, sometime before 1914. Shipping labels pasted to the trunk indicate that Alice Longfellow took it with her to Europe on trips in 1923 and 1928, visiting England, France, Italy and Austria. By the late twenties, steamer trunks like Alice’s were falling out of fashion as travelers increasingly took to the latest popular trend in luggage, the more portable and affordable suitcase.

Where this belongs

• Longfellow House Washington's Headquarters National Historic Site

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