Anyone Know This Shop?

Just bought a nice piece of copper with the shopmark "Camp Northwood" stamped on the bottom. Anyone have any background on the works? Thanks all!

 

May be a (literal) summer camp project.

Debora

 

Could be, there is a Camp Northwood in Maine. But it was established in 1976 and the offered activities don't seem to include anything as 'industrious' as copper working (unless you count building with Legos).

 

Lego building! I can see the school paper now... "How I Spent My Summer Vacation."

Debora

 

It could just be "property marking" in case of theft.

 

Interesting - could be.

 

they mention an arts and crafts buidling. this is arts and crafts. so, with all these children and parents passing and rambling around it may well be that they marked it as belonging to them.

 

Is this where you bought it?
http://www.acstickley.com/metalware/arts-crafts-hammered-copper-vase-c1920s/

 

I would be very cautious with that c1920s date. The font used for "Camp Northwood" is not a font used during that period.

Debora

 

I'd swear I've seen that stamp a couple times. More likely 1970s.

 

Yep.

 

I would agree with the 1970s date for the font.

Debora

 

I'd guess a fairly well done metal-crafts piece with a somewhat carelessly applied patina, done by either a camper or instructor - but would also suspect quite a bit earlier than the '70s, so am curious as to why the font couldn't be earlier...

~Cheryl

 

Fonts go in and out of fashion just as colors do. And new ones are created all the time. That bold san-serif certainly looks post-World War II when Helvetica was king. Could, of course, be wrong. An experienced graphic designer, one well versed in type, could identify which would help with dating.

Debora

 

Personally, have seen extremely similar, if not identical, fonts on metalware, as well as in advertising, that would date no later than the 1920s-'30s, some considerably earlier, even back to the 19th century. The first to come to mind was Jos. Heinrichs' copperware, which would date circa 1897-1937, but feel sure I could come up with numerous other examples by just thumbing through Rainwater's book on silver marks, or examples of old ads...









Quick search found this 1954 reference to a New York state 'Camp Northwood', there were others dating as far back as the '30s, but this was the only one that referenced 'Metals and Indian Crafts':



~Cheryl

 

I had to laugh at 'pollen free'

 

No clue as to this particular font, but Cheryl is correct about such typefaces being plentiful much earlier than the 1970s. This typeface is typical of the "grotesques" ... Helvetica was based on Akzidenz Grotesk (which was released circa 1898).

Yes, I have watched the Helvetica movie. In fact, this conversation makes me want to watch it again.