Education medal, 1915 - 2 1/2 inch diameter bronze color metal, mounted in a 3-inch square of heavy cardboard covered in deep green silk velvet, "Students Medal TO Benjamin Waldstein a Graduate of the New Bedford Textile School for Highest Excellence, June 17, 1915". Medal shows a seal of The National Association of Cotton Manufacturers, Founded 1854, Incorporated Dec. 1, 1894 with a loom at the center and skeins of twisted cotton around the border. The reverse side of the medal features an oak wreath and an eagle with wings spread clutching a ribbon embossed with 1899 A.D.
Dimensions: 3” square X <1” D
The technical training offered at the New Bedford Textile School was consistent with the type of schooling offered in most of the textile manufacturing centers in New England and the mid-Atlantic states into the years following the Second World War. Many schools were operated in conjunction with but apart from the public school systems. In New Jersey (1881), Massachusetts (1897), Connecticut (1907), and New York (1908) there were state-supported industrial arts/textiles schools. In addition, many cities with large textile industries supported specialty schools: including Philadelphia, New York City, Altoona, Milwaukee, Washington DC, and Columbus, OH. This medal expands our understanding of education into the technical and trade training so important to American industrial progress in the late 19th and into the mid 20th centuries, as well as broadening our collection of personal stories related to our textile collections.
Benjamin Waldstein (1895-1978) was the son of Russian immigrants. He lived in Brookline, Mass with his wife Ethel from 1935-1978. He spent his working lifetime as a salesman in the cotton industry. The medal was donated by his family.
ATHM Collection: 2014.216.4; gift of Marjorie J. Short
