Brass Floor Ashtray
Object Name
Brass Floor AshtrayLabel
Standing almost two feet high, this brass floor ashtray would have been placed alongside chairs and benches throughout Beaver Meadows, allowing seated visitors to enjoy a cigarette or two. Taliesin's inclusion of ashtrays with various heights and designs directly contributed to visitor enjoyment and comfort within Beaver Meadows. In the present, including portable ashtrays in the layout of a building would be a second thought to interior designers. However, in the 1960s, ashtray considerations were a top priority. A total of ten of these cigarette stands were ordered for Beaver Meadows Visitor Center. In 1966, they were purchased for twenty dollars.Ashtrays are artifacts of midcentury smoking culture commonly found in 1960s homes, offices, public buildings, and even airplanes and hospitals. These utilitarian items assumed a remarkable suite of forms and materials, from ornate glass-blown sculptures to more vernacular containers (such as a coffee can) and everywhere in between. Because the public had yet to adopt or become aware of warnings by public health professionals regarding the dangers of smoking, accommodations for smokers in the 1960s was expected. Ashtrays and their changing forms could be interpreted as representative of those accommodations, as they have become increasingly obscured from sight over time.
Collection Number
ROMO #22635Date of Requisition
May 4, 1966Materials
MetalDimensions
23.5” H x 7.25” D | 59.7 cm x 18.4 cmManufacturer
MacDonald Building Product Corp.
