Our Collection

At the Institute’s core is the Gilder Lehrman Collection, one of the great archives in American history. More than 85,000 items cover five hundred years of American history, from Columbus’s 1493 letter describing the New World through the end of the twentieth century.

W. H. Horstmann & Sons Sword of William E. Jones

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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC02711.10 Author/Creator: W. H. Horstmann & Sons Place Written: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Type: Object Date: circa 1862 Pagination: 1 sword : steel ; 85 cm. high Order a Copy

Non-commissioned officer's sword, similar to GLC02711.09, also said to have been used at West Point. It belonged to William E. Jones. W. H. Horstmann & Sons had retail stores in both New York and Philadelphia; most of their swords and sabers had imported blades, usually German.

Horstmann firm was founded by William H. Horstmann (1785-1850), who had immigrated to Philadelphia from Germany. Horstmann bought out a local swordmaker in 1828 and thereafter entered the military goods field. The firm benefitted from the Civil War, becoming the largest military goods supplier in the nation by 1864.

Jones, William E., 1824-1864

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