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Allcut Push Lawn Mower

National Museum of American History

Object Details

Description
The Auto-Sickle Company of South Natick, Massachusetts produced this Allcut model push lawn mower around 1930. This type of side-wheel, cutting cylinder style mower was popular in America. Most Americans before the Civil War did not have lawns because grass was for animals. With a growing trend toward suburbs and single family homes came the need for lawn maintenance.
Many factors led to the suburban design of the single family home surrounded by a yard, including mid-19th century romanticism, transportation, real estate developers, architects, water and sewer systems, and new magazines about suburban life. Research and educational materials from the Department of Agriculture, The U.S. Golf Association and the Garden Club of America also popularized lawns. Garden clubs promoted the "City Beautiful" Movement before WWI, and federal support of the Victory Garden during WWI added to the idea. After the war, the desire was also shown in the middle-class auto suburbs. By the 1930s lawns were a standard suburban landscape feature across America.
Credit Line
Estate of Dorothea Elizabeth Klemme
ca 1920
ID Number
1985.0285.01
accession number
1985.0285
catalog number
1985.0285.01
Object Name
Mower, Lawn
Physical Description
wood (handle material)
cast iron (part material)
See more items in
Work and Industry: Agriculture and Natural Resources
Cultures & Communities
America on the Move
Exhibition
America On The Move
Exhibition Location
National Museum of American History
National Museum of American History
Record ID
nmah_873000
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a6-deaa-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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