Brenton Reef Light Vessel, from the Lighthouses series (N119) issued by Duke Sons & Co. to promote Honest Long Cut Tobacco 1889

Editor: Here we have "Brenton Reef Light Vessel," from 1889, made by W. Duke, Sons & Co. using colored pencil, watercolor, and print. It's delicate. It's on a small card, and you wouldn't know, necessarily, it was about something important, like maritime safety. What do you make of it? Curator: It's fascinating to see what was deemed worthy of immortalization in mass media, isn’t it? This card isn’t just advertising tobacco; it’s also participating in a larger project of nation-building. How do we define and celebrate American industry, innovation, and even heroism at this time? Consider what kind of visual vocabulary is accessible to the general public at this time. Editor: So, you are saying that it isn't *just* marketing. It also carries weight as a kind of historical document of the late 19th century. Is that why they focused on functional structures such as lighthouses? Curator: Precisely! Duke, Sons & Co. are using popular imagery to cultivate brand loyalty by aligning their product with powerful symbols of progress, security, and national identity. Tobacco, believe it or not, was intimately connected with discourses of labour, leisure, and citizenship. It might be aimed at a more blue-collar consumer, one who engages with physical, tangible labour. Editor: Wow, I hadn't thought of it that way. Now it seems to be about a lot more than just a ship or tobacco. Curator: These objects circulated in networks of social and economic exchange, acting as small ambassadors of American culture and aspiration. They also prompt questions about class and national identity at a specific historical juncture. Editor: So, it reflects the socio-economic ambitions of the 19th century! I'll definitely view such pieces from a different angle from now on. Thank you.