Object Record
Images
Metadata
Object Name |
Factory |
Source |
Muscatine Art Center |
Iowa History Era Tag |
Statewide Settlement (1869-1896) |
Chronological Tag |
The Emergence of Modern America (1890-1930) |
Catalog Number |
2018.010.003 |
Credit line |
Muscatine Art Center - Muscatine, Iowa |
Description |
This photograph shows John Frederick Boepple working in his pearl button shop around 1891. Boepple, a German immigrant button maker, launched the pearl button industry in Muscatine in 1891, when he opened a small button shop. The button and clamming industries started small but quickly overwhelmed the town. Clamming became the Mississippi River's gold rush while large automated factories and shell-cutting shops employed nearly half the local workforce. By 1905, Muscatine made 37 percent of the world's buttons and earned the title of "Pearl Button Capital of the World." Boepple was ousted from his factory by his business partners around 1910. He then began buying shells for other companies. He also studied mussels for the Fairport Biological Station, founded by the U.S. Congress in 1908. In late 1911, Boepple stepped on a shell while working in an Indiana river and passed away the following year. Content can be used with the following standards: 2nd grade SS 2.24 Natural Resources, SS-W.H. 9-12.26 Iowans Influence World History and 4th grade SS 4.25 Technological Changes in a lesson on how the natural resources of Iowa led to businesses and new industries. For any use other than instructional resources, please check with the organization that owns this item regarding copyright restrictions. |
Additional Research & Sources |
The rise and fall of the pearl button occurred over nearly 75 years before being replaced by plastic buttons. During this time, Boepple began his own pearl button business. After finding the mussles of Illnois too fragile and thin to cut, he returned to Muscatine where the mussels were thick and durable to cutitng. Creating an ocean pearl machine to cut fresh water mussel shells, Boepple established his first shop. However, the McKinley tariff of 1890 made ocean shell imports rather expensive and Boebbles had to find a business partner to help with the business. Working with William Molis, the two opened the worlds first fresh water pearl button plant in the world. As the factory grew, the plant moved from the foot-powered to steam-powered machines and created a Barry Automatic machine to drill holes to make a standardized button. Muscatine soon became known as the Pearl Button Capital of the World. |
Notes on Related Objects |
Object is related to the following library resources, which can be found by searching the catalog number in the advanced search section: Catalog #: 2018.045.056- Study of Iowa Population as Related to Industrial Conditions 2018.045.059 Iowa as a Manufacturing State 2018.045.198- Mississippi River |
Primary/Secondary Source |
Significant - Local |
County Tag |
Muscatine |
People |
Boepple, John Frederick |
Relation |
Show Related Records... |
Multimedia Links |
Click here to view/hear the file. |
Artist |
J. A. Chamberlain |
Search Terms |
Business & Industry Innovators Services Types of Business and Industries Pearl Buttons Mississippi River |
Legal Status |
Ownership of this resource is held by the Muscatine Art Center and has been provided here for educational purposes only, specifically for use in the Iowa Museum Association's "Teaching Iowa History" project. It may not be downloaded, reproduced or distributed in any format without written permission from the Rights Holder. For information on U.S. and International copyright laws, consult an attorney. |
