✅ SOLVED Age of door knob found at War of 1812 soldier's home

[invent4hir]

All, I’ve been detecting the former home site of an officer who served during the War of 1812. When he wasn’t serving in the military or as a civic leader, he worked as a blacksmith. He built the home in the early 1800s and lived there until his death in 1850. The home had been occupied on and off up until the 2000s.

Near the home I found this rusty door knob with no fancy design or markings. I searched TNet but didn’t find a close enough match and descriptions on the internet focus mostly on either more decorative and/or finer quality door knobs.

So, do you think it dates before 1850 or later? Reason for asking is that I intend to include it in an educational display case that will be donated to the local historical society.

 

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[RustyGold]

It’s a good bet that it is from that era if that’s when he built the home using the available hardware from the time.

 

[cw0909]

could be from that time,couple of articles on door knobs and hardware
pt 1
Door Hardware, Part One: 1800 to 1850 | Architectural Observer
pt2
Door Hardware, Part Two: 1850 to 1900 | Architectural Observer

 

[invent4hir]

It’s a good bet that it is from that era if that’s when he built the home using the available hardware from the time.

RustyGold, thanks for chiming in. After doing the original post, I went back and read more about the extensive interior remodeling done to the home in the late 19th & early 20th centuries. One of the styles used in the remodeling was the Bungalow style, which features simplicity. So, this simple door knob could possible be original to the home or added as part of the remodel. Will keep researching.

 

[invent4hir]

could be from that time,couple of articles on door knobs and hardware
pt 1
Door Hardware, Part One: 1800 to 1850 | Architectural Observer
pt2
Door Hardware, Part Two: 1850 to 1900 | Architectural Observer

cw0909, kudos for your thoughts and the links to the articles. I may try to find some old catalogs to confirm or rule out the door knob was part of the re-model. As a bonus, Part One shows an early 19th century door latch that is similar to one I found at another property.

 

[invent4hir]

Returned to the property today to detect some more. Noticed the back door knob looked both plain and old so took some pictures to compare to the one above. Comparing the door knob dug (left) to the one on the back door (right), they are are different in several ways. 1) The door knob dug has a seam where the hand grips it (red arrow). The seam on the back door knob is closer to the neck (blue arrow). 2) The back door knob has a set screw (black arrow), whereas the door knob dug does not. 3) The neck of the door knob dug has a larger diameter than the back door knob (yellow arrows). The only thing the 2 door knobs have in common is that they are both about 2.2” diameter and are plain.

If the back door knob was installed as part of a remodel that might suggest that the knob dug was used on the home earlier. If so, how much earlier is to be determined.

 

[Anduril]

Unrelated, but little known fact:

Several of the door knobs on the 83rd & 84th floors of the Empire State Building are original.*
Very cool looking Art Deco hardware, if you're into that sort of thing - I have photos somewhere.

Both floors are restricted access: Broadcast rooms. (Radio, TV, etc...)

(*) At least that was still the case about 10 years ago.

 

[invent4hir]

I reached out to a friend who works at the Ohio History Connection who suggested I contact a colleague of his. After exchanging a few emails, he said “As far as the door knob date, you can probably go as low as 1830 and be pretty confident.”

 

[invent4hir]

A BIG thanks to everyone again who pitched in. Have a good Labor Day weekend

 

[ANTIQUARIAN]

If you're interested, I'd be happy to tumble the doorknob for you my friend.
It looks to be all iron, so unless you either hit it with electrolysis or treat the rust in another method, it will eventually destroy the knob.

Of course, there's no guarantee of the results whatever method you use, but over the years I've found tumbling to be very effective.
Here's a link to the Restoration Projects forum where you can see some of my results with tumbling iron... Restoration Projects

Dave

 

[invent4hir]

Dave, WOW thanks for the offer to tumble!! While I have used electrolysis in the past with excellent results, the historical society has requested that artifacts donated to them stay in "as close to dug" condition as possible. We've agreed that I remove the dirt, gently remove the surface rust with a brass brush, then coat with White Rain. Once in a display case, the amount of oxygen and moisture coming in contact with an artifact is significantly reduced. In the 4 years I've done this, no new rust has appeared. If in the future that approach turns out to be a bad decision, I can always perform electrolysis or another method then.

AGAIN A HUGE THANK YOU FOR OFFERING YOUR TALENT AND TIME