Physical object: Miniature Carriage for General Tom Thumb (Charles S. Stratton)

Miniature carriage or coach made for Charles S. Stratton, better known by his stage name, General Tom Thumb. Stratton was a little person who began his career as a performer in 1843 working for P. T. Barnum at the American Museum in New York City. Barnum discovered Stratton when he was a young child, a mere two feet tall at age 5, and tutored him and taught him to perform. Stratton did many "meet and greet" and performance tours in America as well as tours in Europe and a world tour, and his miniature, custom-made equipage (coach, coachmen, and horses) were a primary feature in Barnum's promotions of these tours. This coach, just 38.25 inches high and 77 inches long, must have delighted people when it arrived with its diminutive passenger stepping out to greet the crowd. It is one of several show carriages--the total number unknown--that were made for Stratton, one of which was a gift from Queen Victoria. This carriage likely dates to the 1850s, when Stratton was younger and thus smaller, as the cabin space is very limited. (As a mature adult, Stratton was 42 inches tall.) The maker of this vehicle is unknown. The coach's body style defines it as a coupe, identified by the single front-facing seating bench, instead of the more traditional symmetrical coach body with two seating spaces, one facing forward and the other facing backward, with the door in the center. The exterior of the carriage is painted black and dark reddish brown but this is not the original paint surface. There are five beveled glass windows: one at the back, one on either side, and a pair at the front that can be opened inward by the passenger with a tiny ivory knob. On either side, extending below the body, there is an iron step to help the passenger enter or alight. The undercarriage includes elliptical steel springs to which the body is suspended and the interior features a seat for one and side panels of tufted upholstery in cherry red silk, once luxurious but now very fragile. At the front of the carriage is an elevated seat for the driver, or coachman, with a black leather cover, and burgundy wool carpet. Both wheels have 14 spokes, but the front wheels are smaller, measuring about 17.5 inches in diameter while the rear wheels are 23.5 inches in diameter. The wooden wheels have iron rims, which were the original form of tires. Shetland ponies, a strong, hardy breed that typically measures just 28 to 42 inches high at the withers (shoulders), were most likely used to pull this carriage. There are a few surviving examples General Tom Thumb's show carriages in other collections, and depictions of the full turnout can be seen in many General Tom Thumb souvenirs and advertising items.