Marble dispenser?
Is that a roundball in the one corner? Or a marble?
Voting in clubs used blackballing type devices ,but yours does not resemble those. Could have been used for such though....
Maybe removing one at a time after voting allowed more drama and recording of white or black marbles
Could work for choosing"volunteers" of who took the worst delivery route , or worked overtime too, instead of drawing straws. Drawing a black marble means you volunteered......
I know this type of box, and have used two similar ones in my life. It was used for voting to either accept or reject someone, ie. 'black ball' or 'white ball.' The first time I used one was when I was a member of the Rainbow Girls, which is a group similar to the Masons for men and Eastern Star for women, except it was for teenage girls. The second time was when I was in a sorority in college.
How it works: There are a group of black and white balls in the large area. The voting person opens the top lid, selects either a white or black ball and places it inside the little carved out hole. The person reading the results, slides the ball out and counts it as either yeah or nay.
You could probably narrow down which fraternal organization owned it by doing some research on fraternal organizations that were in your area from the 1920s-1950s-60s.
That one would hold a LOT of votes. ;-) (And typically such ballot devices have a small opening at the top. You'd be reaching into everyone else's balls with that lid . . . so to speak).
That one would hold a LOT of votes. ;-) (And typically such ballot devices have a small opening at the top. You'd be reaching into everyone else's balls with that lid . . . so to speak).
Whomever made this box was certainly not a master craftsman; therefore, the dimensions are really off and the ball area is large. I think there is a missing petition, and perhaps the OP can check the attic again to see if it can be found.
I have seen something similar on firetrucks to drop sand, ashes, or even salt in front of the rear wheels to help with traction on ice or snow. this could have been home made to fit on a mail truck for the same reason.
