-Home Bank (no Dormer Windows)- mechanical bank 1872

This is Doras A. Stiles's mechanical bank titled -Home Bank (no Dormer Windows)-. The bank is made of metal, and the specific date of its creation is unknown. The concept of a ‘home bank’ speaks volumes about the values of a society that encourages individual savings and investment. A closer look reveals the gendering of financial spaces at the time, where women, often confined to the domestic sphere, were subtly encouraged to participate in the financial world through these home-based banks. Simultaneously, it reinforced the idea of the home as a space of financial responsibility, subtly placing the burden of economic stability on the individual. It evokes a sense of aspiration, the desire to own property, and the emotional security associated with having a home. This "Home Bank" embodies the ethos of self-reliance while hinting at the complex relationships between gender, domesticity, and economic empowerment.