January 25, 2005
"Making Cooking Easy with Old Colony Stoves" (illustrated talk)
Jane Emack-Cambra, of the Old Colony Historical Society in Taunton, will show off the best products that the Taunton region could produce in the 19th century and explore how industries have shaped the city we know today
"Making Cooking Easy with Old Colony Stoves," an illustrated lecture, will be presented by Jane Emack-Cambra, curator of the Old Colony Historical Society. Mrs. Emack-Cambra has researched Taunton's industrial history throughout her nineteen years with the OCHS. Here she turns her attention to the many stove companies and related industries that once dotted the region's landscape. "Making Cooking Easy" was the advertising slogan for one of the country's best-known stoves, the Glenwood Range, made in Taunton.
In many ways, Taunton's story is America's story, and this is especially true when looking at its industrial history. Like many eastern cities in the 19th century, widespread industries such as textiles, machine works, and brickyards drew thousands of immigrant workers, swelling the population and affecting every aspect of life for the city's residents. However, Taunton can claim some specialties found nowhere else that reflect the craftsmanship, ingenuity, and dedication of those workers.
The Taunton region was an excellent location for the 17th century ironworks. It became a major stove manufacturing center.
Background: Jane Emack-Cambra grew up in Dighton and is a graduate of Defiance College, Defiance, Ohio, with a degree in history and museum studies. After returning to the east coast in 1983, she spent two years at the Fuller Museum of Art in Brockton as a curatorial assistant. She is an active member of several regional societies including the Somerset Historical Society and the New England Museum Association. Emack-Cambra assumed her duties as curator of the Old Colony Historical Society in 1985.
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