Manufacturer McClary Manufacturing

"Tecumseh" Bread Box

Datec 1920s

Dimensions26 × 41.9 × 30.5 cm (10 1/4 × 16 1/2 × 12 in.)

Credit LineGift of Jane Bondy, London, Ontario, 1990.

Object number1990.015.155

Label TextIn the 1920s, the McClary Manufacturing Company introduced Tecumseh Ware. Company advertising noted this “great Indian ally of the British possessed…staying qualities and loyalty.” Just as “Tecumseh stood behind his pledges, McClary’s stand behind every piece of Tecumseh Ware…” For Non-Indigenous Canadians, Tecumseh was a hero of the War of 1812 and the epitome of the “Noble Savage”: virtuous, brave, and strong. In appropriating his name, McClary’s tried to link their product with these qualities. They also objectified and trivialized this Shawnee warrior and leader.

NameBox, Bread

CopyrightPhoto Credit: Toni Hafkenscheid